The Rocker Reviewed on Blu-ray
By
This is the first movie starring "The Office"'s Rainn Wilson, but clearly he has more to learn about the difference between a sitcom performance and a theatrical movie performance. Sometimes he gets the level right, but all too often he oversells lines, oversells gestures, and makes Funny Faces. All of these make the viewer all too aware this is a performance, not a character. If the movie was in a broader style itself, this wouldn't be a problem, but it's basically a realistic comedy with touches of drama.
This isn't to say that Wilson isn't often funny, but too frequently he hams it up comedically, in a style different from other actors on screen at the moment. Bring it down, Wilson, bring it down; you'll get farther and be better.
The movie is very (very very) loosely based on the career, or lack of career, of Pete Best, the original Beatles drummer who was replaced by Ringo Starr. Best even appears briefly in this movie, as a gray-haired gent waiting on a bus bench with Wilson's Robert "Fish" Fishman. As we see in an opening scene, back in 1987, Fish was the drummer for struggling heavy-metal band Vesuvius. Offered a contract without Fish (and nothing with Fish), the other three Vesuvians immediately dump him, leading to a moderately funny man-vs-RV chase in the streets of Cleveland (played by Toronto).
Twenty years later, Fish disconsolately works for a telemarketing company, fired when he blows his stack at a fellow worker who's enthusiastic about Vesuvius, now one of the biggest of all rock acts. (Though this isn't entirely convincing; their music is unexceptional.) He has to move in with his married sister, exiled to the attic, where it's obvious he has spent a good deal of time.
His pudgy nephew Matt (the busy, and very good, Josh Gad) is himself in a rock group, A.D.D., scheduled to play at the high school prom, but they too have lost their drummer. He suggests to his fellow band members, Curtis (singer/songwriter Teddy Geiger) and Amelia (Emma Stone), that Fish be invited to be the drummer for the gig. They're reluctant--Fish is an alarming throwback, looking to these 21st century kids like something from the stone age--but finally give in.
Fish is thrilled; now he gets to finish his unfulfilled ambitions of 20 years before. He's also a terrific drummer--the story wouldn't work if he was a joke--but overplays his hand at the prom. Nonetheless, since he does scare up another gig for A.D.D., they let him continue in the group.
One thing leads to another, and A.D.D. is launched on a rock tour, where Fish really overdoes everything in an amusing montage. However, Wilson is so broad here that it's hard to visualize how he could calm down, but when it's a case of shape up or ship out, he shapes up. Also, Curtis' mother Kim (Christina Applegate) also joins the rock tour.
If you can't see where things are heading, you haven't seen very many movies or TV shows, but it's to the credit of screenwriters Maya Forbes and Wallace Wolodarsky that the inevitable is held off for some time. Forbes comes from "Curb Your Enthusiasm" and Wolodarsky from "The Simpsons;" they worked together on "Monsters vs. Aliens." Their movie work so far isn't up to the level of their TV writing; "The Rocker" is too often obvious and mechanical; it's never really forced, but in terms of story and dialogue, it's only slightly above average.
Director Peter Cattaneo is best known (if at all) for "The Full Monty;" his other feature work has been negligible. Maybe he was hired because an idea Matt has for linking the computers of all four A.D.D. members, allowing them to rehearse while in their own rooms, winds up a YouTube sensation because Fish rehearses in the nude. The plot unpersuasively tries to have A.D.D. become famous because of the naked drummer in their midst--AND because they are, guess what, a really good band anyway. They just needed the boost of Fish's bare butt spread across computer screens everywhere.
The movie is very well cast, with Jason Sudeikis particularly good as A.D.D.'s opportunistic manager, placed in that job by the record company that signs them up. From the outtakes (an extra on the disc), it's clear that Sudeikis improvised a good deal of his best material. Like Josh Gad, he's going to be a busy man. Howard Hesseman and "30 Rock"'s Jane Krakowski also turn up, but neither is used to very good advantage. However, Anzi Ansari, from "Parks and Recreation," has a funny scene at the beginning. The three surviving members of Vesuvius are all amusing, especially Will Arnett (about as busy as Gad these days), who plays the lead of the group.
The extras include a commentary track by Wilson and director Cattaneo, in which they heavily pat each other on the back; a second track by Gad, Sudeikis, Teddy Geiger and Emma Stone sounds like it might have been amusing to sit through with the actors, but it's pretty much useless as a commentary track. There are plenty of other extras, including several deleted scenes that, as usual, are all too obviously highly deletable.
This is, of course, a Blu-ray disc, but "The Rocker" isn't a movie about visuals, apart from Wilson's very loud and extensive 1970s rock-star wardrobe, so the excellent color and sharper definition don't really add much to the film. The soundtrack is top-notch, however, and suitable for playing at wall-shaking volumes. Yes, it looks better, but looking better doesn't really matter very much in this case.
"The Rocker" is predictable and uneven, especially regarding Wilson's performance, but it's harmless enough, a cheerful, upbeat movie about trying to fulfill one's goals. There's a small touch of romance (for both Fish and Matt), some laughs, a lot of pretty good music. Nothing worth going out of your way for, but mostly fun to watch, just the same.
