The Tenants (2005)

In an abandoned tenement, an African-American militant writer and a Jewish novelist develop a friendship while struggling to complete their novels, but inner tension rises between the two.

Director:

Danny Green

Writers:

David Diamond, Danny Green (adaptation),

Stars:

Dylan McDermott, Sera Demira, Snoop Dogg

Cast

Credited cast:
Dylan McDermott	...	Harry Lesser
Sera Demira	...	Mitra
Snoop Dogg	...	Willie Spearmint
Rose Byrne	...	Irene Bell
Seymour Cassel	...	Levenspiel
Niki J. Crawford	...	Mary Kettlesmith
Aldis Hodge	...	Sam Clemence
Gene Gilbert	...	Mr. Ross
Linda Lawson	...	Anna
Stephen Jared	...	Young Cop
Laz Alonso	...	Jacob 32
Christopher May	...	Stage Actor
Karimah Westbrook	...	Female Partygoer
Lamont Bentley	...	Male Partygoer
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Carla Glover	...	Party Goer

Storyline

On the top floor of an abandoned tenement, Harry Lesser struggles to complete the novel he has been writing for almost ten years. Then Willie Spearmint, black militant and aspiring writer, moves into another part of the building to work on his own book.

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Plot Keywords:

writer | militant | african american | book | friendship | 

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Taglines:

Worlds apart... and right next door.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Romance | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for pervasive language, some violence, sexual content and drug use

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA Germany

Language:

English

Release Date:

April 2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

Die letzten Mieter

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$2,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$2,010 (USA) (3 February 2006)

Gross:

$2,010 (USA) (3 February 2006)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Equity Pictures Medienfonds GmbH & Co. KG II, Millennium Films, Nu Image Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Soundtracks

"Bulu Kobo"
Written by Coati Mundi (as Coati Mundi Hernandez)
Performed by Manicphonic Mobsters
Published by Rainbowphonic Music (BMI)
Courtesy of Coati Mundi Productions

User Reviews

Doesn't work

Watching The Tenants has been a interesting experience for me. It is the first film I have ever seen where I have shuttled at speed through parts of the (non)action - and I can normally watch anything from turgid action movies to Serbo-Croat indie and find them fascinating.

The Tenants is frustratingly sluggish and over-orchestrated. One of the main problems of the script is there is little realistic character dialogue, apart from the set pieces where characters 'collide' in a very structured setting (to make this work, the film needed to feel more conceptual, which it didn't). This leads to a lack of realistic character development; everyone seems two-dimensional.

The worse for this is the character of Bill Spear, aka Snoop Dogg. I found his characterization very uncomfortable and very unsympathetic. At one point, I even stopped the film because I got so annoyed by the character's aggressive, violent and monotonal delivery, the lack of any other personality layer apart from that of the reactionary "on" switch (which gets really predictable after a while) and I so desperately wanted him to have some redeeming qualities. However, one reason for this jar might be the nebulous time scape of the film (supposedly 70s, it feels and looks more early noughties). If it had been more securely fixed in the 70s, his character might have seemed more understandable.

The lighting of the film was also awkward. All the way through, the soundtrack attempts to provide a certain gritty, jazz-infused atmosphere that just did not come off, largely because the set was too well-lit.

The Tenants, to me, is an unbelievable film. It doesn't depict real people or propose any interesting ways of thinking about race, identity or the life of a writer, be they white or black.

Strangely, I came away with the feeling that this project needed David Lynch; his eerie, clastrophobic and obsessive look and feel would have lifted both the actors and the script into something quite remarkable.