On DVD: The Rocker
Rainn Wilson's comedy doesn't compare to This is Spinal Tap, but it's not a bad little flick.
'The Rocker' -
20th Century Fox
To those about to rock, we salute you. Those who aren't, well, for you we have The Rocker. One of a number of poorly pushed, under-performing films for Fox this summer, The Rocker is actually the one that deserved to do decently well. It's certainly not a bad flick. It's an overly cute, stupid comedy to be sure, but it is never bad. It's funny enough, has plenty of talent behind it and actually takes a classic staple of the comedy genre -- the rock band looking for their big break -- and throws a series of original concepts on the pile. The result is something well worth checking out for comedy fans or the growing throng of Rainn Wilson devotees. Directed by Peter Cattaneo, the guy behind The Full Monty, this is the story of Fish, a drummer who once upon a time helped create one of the greatest bands of the modern era. But when getting signed to a major label means ditching their drummer so he can be replaced by the producer's nephew, the band takes the deal. And thus they are ushered into rock legend, while Fish is left to rot in day job hell, bitter for 20 years. But when Fish subs in for his own nephew's band, the resulting YouTube video puts them on the radar of a major label and on a collision course with the past. While the film pretty much plays with all the classic situations you've come to expect, it never goes down roads as familiar as you expect. Oftentimes this comedy takes the road less traveled and therein lies what works with this film. While Fish is clearly an idiot, he's also very good at what he does and turns a garage band into an overnight sensation with his talent and instincts. It's the likable idiot track that separates this from the usual batch of mean-spirited low-brow comedies and makes it a solid cuddling on the couch movie. The commentary track with Cattaneo and Wilson is an interesting collection of how-we-did-this and how-we-did-that, plus the occasional comment along the lines of how the entire film was shot at 4:00 in the morning. But Wilson's natural humor shows through and you really get the feeling that they enjoyed working together and making the film. There's a second commentary track too, delivered by actors Emma Stone, Josh Gad, Jason Sudeikis, and Teddy Geiger. But they all try way too hard to be funny, which pretty much doomed them to be anything but. Also here are 16 minutes of (thankfully) deleted scenes, a gag reel, and a variety of short (roughly two minutes per) self-promo pieces that really don't amount to much. The arguable exception is "Pete Best Interview," in which the movie's inspiration -- the Beatles' original drummer who left the group just before they hit world-wide superstardom after Ringo replaced him -- gets a few words in as he preps for his cameo appearance. (Good ol' Pete is now off my "I thought he was dead" list.) All in all, the disc is worth a rental by any fan of rock-and-roll comedy or Rainn Wilson. The Rocker is available now from Fox Home Entertainment. Most Popular Stories
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