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I have not enjoyed a movie that made me cry as much as I did this one. That movie, if you don't know, is RENT. Here's a great article in Playbill about the journey this Broadway play from the 90's about the 80's finally made it to the silver screen in 2005!



I'll admit, this is another play I know by heart from the soundtrack and never saw on stage. The actors (only two were not from the original cast) look no worse for the times.



The newcomers however are no slouches. Stage and TV actress Tracie Thoms was amazing as Joanne. Even more amazing was Rosario Dawson as Mimi. I've loved Rosario in everything she's done, and she was an absolute treat as the Cat Scratch dancer Mimi.



The soundtrack in the movie was almost indistinguishable from the CD we have from the Broadway play. This is a plus.



But finally being able to see this incredible and Bohemian work brought to the big screen was just beyond words.



Go see it.

I am a member of the MTV generation, but I grew up after they stopped playing music videos. Now, ha, who needs MTV thanks to the internet, which grew with me as well. For as long as there's been an MTV, there's been Madonna. I have followed her career and admired how she has reinvented herself more times than Doctor Who.



Madonna's new album, "Confessions on a Dance Floor" came out Tuesday and I bought it as soon as I could. I have not stopped listening to it. It's hypnotic. Where I'd thought she'd grown up with "American Life" (apparently I'm the only person who liked this album), now she's gone back to her NY Dance club roots and has spun an album that plays like a full-length dance mix. It's a lot of fun to listen to.



My favorite song on the album is "Forbidden Love" -- a completely different song than the one on 1994's "Bedtime Stories". I'd love to see a video for it, but it may be little more than the video for "Hung Up". Pure dance candy. The whole album is dance candy, but the content of songs like "Forbidden Love", "Jump", "How High", and "Push" give weight beyond the beat. Don't expect any ballads, just a fun dance-inducing listen.



Whatever you may think about Madonna, how can you not love her music?