The Rocker Brief Overview
It's the rockin' eighties, and Robert "Fish" Fishman (Rainn Wilson) is the drummer of an up and coming hard rock band called Vesuvius. When they are about to hit it big, the rest of the band are coerced by a promoter, to dump Fish, in order to become a successful band. And so, Vesuvius get rid of the very heart and soul of their group, and go on to rock greatness.
Twenty years have since passed, and Fish spends his days mindlessly manning phones at a call centre, when he overhears a co-worker playing the latest Vesivius album. Beating up his co-worker in a fit of rage, Fish gets fired, breaks up with his girlfriend, and ends up bunking up in the attic, at the family home of his stern yet generous sister (Jane Lynch).
Fish soon notices his nephew Matt (Josh Gad) is trying to complete a band, in order to secure a gig playing his school prom. Along with his friends, lead singer Curtis (Teddy Geiger) and bassist Amelia (Emma Stone), Matt soon realizes they can learn from Fish, as he was once a renowned drummer.
After a handful of local gigs which meet with various success, one of their jam sessions conducted via webcam (long story, watch the film to understand this), said feed which shows Fish drumming in the nude, ends up on YouTube, scoring millions of hits. It doesn't take long before their band, A.D.D., becomes a hit, and starts touring, with the "Naked Drummer" featuring prominently on the marquee.
All goes well for a while, until inner turmoil amongst the band members surface, namely their potential future with our without Fish, and whether they should accept a one-in-a-lifetime gig opening for Vesuvius, as they are inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Much silliness ensues, with some life lessons thrown in for good measure, along with some admittedly catchy tunes.
The Rocker Overall Analysis
The film at a glance, comes off as a watered down version of School of Rock, with the same measure of life lessons thrown in, with a dash of loyalty and perseverance mixed in. With Rainn Wilson in the Jack Black role, it comes as no surprise that the lead actor finds himself emoting in the style of a mutant offspring version of Black and Jim Carrey, with several overacted scenes which have him blurting out deadpan affirmations of godlike rock righteousness.
The movie boasts a handful of lesser roles, handled by some recent Saturday Night Live cast members (Will Arnett, Fred Armisen), as well as other NBC stalwarts. As for the other supporting roles, by such usually reliable names as Jane Lynch, Jeff Garlin, and yes, Christina Applegate, all try to maximize on the funny factor, but fall flat at each turn. Howard Hesseman, the excellent Johhny Fever of WKRP fame, is reduced to a brief appearance as tour bus driver, which ends up wasted here.
The movie does have catchy tunes, which may be one of very few redeeming factors detectable in its 102 minute running time. Otherwise, people will have a sense of deja vu as to the aforementioned Jack Black movie of the same fabric, surely the producers must have known that the well would run dry.
There are no extra features on the single disc DVD, other than two separate audio commentaries, one including lead start Wilson, the second featuring the three young actors completing the band. A two disc version has way more offered, with such items as a gag reel, deleted scenes, and a load of featurettes.
5 out of 10, for trying very hard (and failing just as much) to be School of Rock II. Rockin', but unnecessary.
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