Based on the Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize-wining originally off-Broadway Rock Opera of the same name by the late Jonathan Larson, who died the night before the play was set to debut, the story revolves around eight friends from the East Village, New York City, New York during 1989 as the AIDS epidemic hit the world hard. In fact, most of the characters are HIV-positive, due to a number of reasons which include homosexuality and drug abuse. We follow the eight main characters through falling in love to AIDS hitting close-to-home, to death during the '89 calendar year.
The cast, which consists mostly of members from the original 1996 stage play, is pretty good, and yet spectacular vocally. Each were comfortable in their roles, including those who have never appeared in the stage version. All of the vocals, as I have said, are incredible, most notably Jesse L. Martin, Idina Menzel and Adam Pascal. Rosario Dawson, who is best known for her acting and not her singing, puts forth a fine vocal performance.
One performance that basically stole the movie is that of Wilson Jermaine Heredia, who plays the drag queen "Angel". He is one of the cast from the original stage play, and has been nominated and won numerous awards for this role on stage. Sadly, we do not see Heredia enough in the film, but when he is on-screen, he stands out from the rest of the cast. Just his performance makes the movie worth seeing.
The visuals are a weak point in the movie. New York City is basically seen in transitional shots of the skyline, which includes a shot of the WTC twin towers. You do get to see the gritty streets of the "Big Apple" however. Another problem is with the indoor sets. Most are small and a bit cramped, but they are able to get choreography off real well.
Director Chris Columbus did a good job in taking what is limited to what the space on stage provides, to the "real world". He also used a lot of unneeded camera movements during big performances.
Overall, this adaptation might not make you want to see the play. But you will enjoy good musical performances that may just add more trophies to this award-winner's shelf.