Rent (Highlights from the Original 2005 Motion Picture Soundtrack)

Yes, it's true that 90% of the time Broadway fans will want the original Broadway cast recording over any other version, and 95% of the time the full recording will beat any set of "highlights." But this collection of songs from the Rent movie may defy both trends. Rentheads surely have the two-disc Broadway version already, and this well-selected 65 minutes may satisfy their desire to have performances from the movie as well (and the movie has less music than the show anyway). On the other end of the spectrum, people who enjoyed the movie but don't feel the compulsion to own every note of what they heard might well be pleased with a single disc of highlights. Pick it up and live La Vie Boheme all over again. --David Horiuchi

One of the longest-running shows in the history of Broadway, and one of its most beloved, Rent was the winner of the Pulizer Price for Drama and four Tony Awards, including Best Musical. Based on Puccini's classic opera "La Boheme," Jonathan Larson's revolutionary rock opera tells the story of a group of bohemians struggling for success and acceptance while enduring the obstacles of poverty, illness and the AIDS epidemic in New York's gritty East Village. Now the powerful musical marks its tenth year on stage by coming to the big screen, acompanied by RENT Highlights From the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack.