Cast: Heather Graham (Pippa McGee), David Sutcliffe (Ian), Taye Diggs (Hemingway Jones), Sandra Oh (Lulu)
For complete cast info, see IMDb's Cake page.
With such a wonderful cast, how could it not be worth renting or recording on Tivo? That was my thought, and I still feel that way after having seen it. Cake is a very cute romantic comedy with an amazing cast.
The story of a travel writer who's not used to be tied down to one place and is very against love and marriage taking over her dad's bridal magazine when he gets sick is very sweet. Initially, she fights with everyone on the magazine's staff, wanting to make the magazine edgy and anti-marriage (not the best for any bridal magazine's sales). In the end, everything works out perfectly, it is a romantic comedy, after all.
Sure Cake is predictable, but it's a cute story that's well done, so it's definitely worth your time.
Grade: B
Labels: 2005, comedy, Heather Graham, movie, romance, Sandra Oh, Taye Diggs
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Marley Shelton (Rebecca), Ron Eldard (Dag), Patrick Breen (Peter), Marisa Tomei (Paula), Taye Diggs (Andre)
For complete cast info, see IMDb's Just a Kiss page.
I rented this because it sounded interesting and the cast was great. The reviews I read made me unsure if it would be worth it, but I figured through Netflix it was barely costing me anything and it was worth trying it out. My husband and I both really enjoyed this bizarre movie. It's definitely not a light comedy and it's definitely very strange, but if you're in the mood for a movie with intertwined love stories that are beyond crazy, this is a great idea for a rental.
Grade: B+
Labels: 2002, comedy, movie, romance, Taye Diggs
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:20 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Anthony Rapp (Mark Cohen), Adam Pascal (Roger Davis), Rosario Dawson (Mimi Marquez), almost the whole original Broadway Cast of Rent
For complete cast information, see IMDb's Rent page.
I'm not going to review every DVD I own (it would take forever), but I had to review the Rent DVD for obvious reasons...
Of course, you all know from my Rent Movie review that I loved the movie. There have been quite a few movies that I loved in theaters and was not impressed with on DVD (no extras or too few, etc.). The Rent DVD is wonderful!
I just finished watching all the special features tonight. (With the Olympics and not enough recording time on Tivo, I didn't have a chance to watch anything on the DVD till this past weekend and didn't have time to watch everything till last night.) The special features on the Rent DVD include a feature commentary by Chris Columbus (director), Adam Pascal (Roger), and Anthony Rapp (Mark). It was a great commentary! Although many might say that they wish more people were on the commentary (and I was one of them initially), there have been many movies (like American Pie) where they allow the whole cast to comment and it becomes a horrible commentary overall, so I respect their decision.
There are a bunch of deleted scenes - including Halloween & Goodbye Love. Although I can get some of Collumbus' points on cutting Goodbye Love, after seeing it (with and without commentary), I wish even more that they had at least kept the part about Benny paying for the funeral, always hating the dog (Evita), etc. I think that shows more of the lighter and friendlier side of Benny... I can understand cutting the whole song, since it is long, but that part is very short. I will never get why they cut Halloween, but felt a little bit better, since it was set in the cemetary, which doesn't make as much sense to me as being in the lot (where it was on stage). The alternate ending was interesting to see, but I'm very happy that they went with the ending they chose.
The documentary on Rent & Jonathan Larson was so interesting. I learned a lot that I hadn't realized and I have read up a lot on the topic. The interviews with Jonathan Larson's friends and family were so touching. The original cast comments on how difficult it was to go on for opening night at the NY Theatre Workshop the night after Jonathan Larson died were so moving. Anyone who loves the musical Rent needs to own this DVD!
I even enjoyed watching the clips on the charities. They were so well done! Even my husband, David wanted to see the pictures they used in the charity bits. That says a lot! Watching all the extras made David want to see the movie again almost as much as I want to, I think. He may regret it later, but tonight he said that he really wants to see Rent (the movie) again, since he only got to see it once and it was a long time ago (even though it was only 3 months). Yippee! Twist my arm...
Grade: A+
Labels: 2005, Adam Pascal, Anthony Rapp, drama, movie, musical, romance, Taye Diggs
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Anthony Rapp (Mark Cohen), Adam Pascal (Roger Davis), Rosario Dawson (Mimi Marquez), almost the whole original Broadway Cast of Rent
For complete cast information, see IMDb's Rent page.
As a huge fan of the musical Rent, I was partly thrilled and partly mortified about the idea of a movie version of my favorite musical. Then, years passed and I thought perhaps it would never happen. Next thing I knew, they had cast almost the entire original Broadway cast of Rent and were starting to film. I wasn't sure Chris Columbus was the best choice, given his background, but then I found out that he's a big fan of the musical Rent, too.
Chris Columbus did an amazing job using the OBC I have loved for almost a decade and preserving my favorite musical for all time. I couldn't be happier that I'll be able to own this on DVD (February 21, 2006 release date) soon!
I saw Rent in movie theaters 5 times and would have seen it more when I was off the week between Christmas and New Years, but sadly it had closed by then. I almost never see a movie twice in theaters, since there are so many movies I like to see, but Rent was well worth the time. I cried every time I saw it. I was amazed at how well they captured the emotion of the musical I love so much.
If you haven't seen the musical Rent, go see the movie (or rent it)! If you have seen the musical, go see the movie! Steve Chbosky did a great job adapting the script, the cast is amazing, the sets and filming were really well done. Definitely a must see! And, in my case, a must own.
Grade: A+
Labels: 2005, Adam Pascal, Anthony Rapp, drama, movie, musical, New York, Rent, romance, Taye Diggs
Reviewed by Kat at the 10:10 AM show | 0 screams