Rock Star is a movie that came out to much fanfare back in 2001 but didn't live up to the expectations, box office-wise, of the studio executives. Directed by Stephen Herek (Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, 101 Dalmatians) and written by John Stockwell (So Fine, My Science Project), it was actually a movie that hit deep within the hearts of many a rocker. It portrays the life of an aspiring rock singer, Mark Wahlberg, who has a tribute band to his favorite, Steel Dragon, and ends up replacing the lead singer of said band. Jennifer Anniston plays the part of his girlfriend and, honestly, they both do a hell of a job.Granted, there are some mistakes which the assistant producers should have seen, like using some songs on the movie, even if they were just part of the soundtrack during the movie, that actually came out after the year 1985, which is when the movie supposedly takes place. No, mistakes like that shouldn't be made in a major Hollywood production, but the fact that they actually made a movie like this makes it sting a little less. The movie, even though set in the mid-80s, takes as inspiration what happened to "Ripper" Owens, who had a Judas Priest tribute band in the mid-90s and ended up coming to take the helm when JP parted ways with Rob Halford.
Rock Star does a good job of showing us pretty much every trick in the "How to Be A Rock Star" handbook, from groupies to nailing hotel furniture to the ceiling of the rooms, to general debauchery. What is amazing about the movie is that you really get into what is happening to the main character played by Wahlberg, Chris Cole (alias Izzy). You go with him from being in a tribute band and having a 9-to-5 job, to suddenly being on top of the world as the lead singer of the hottest band in the land! That's a pretty wild ride that this movie takes us on.
The characters - musicians, groupies, managers - feel real because they are played larger than life, which is the way things are in the rock star business. The movie adds credibility to all this by having many real rock musicians in the acting roster, such as Jason Bonham, Zakk Wylde and Jeff Pilson (Dokken), playing the drummer, lead guitarist and bass player of Steel Dragon, respectively. The Steel Dragon songs were written especially for the movie, and singers Mike
Matijevic (Steelheart) and Jeff Scott Soto did the singing bits that Mark Wahlberg lip-synchs to. That's quite a list of people to add to a project about rock in the 80s.
If you want to watch a movie that'll take you back to an era that existed and live the life of a band that never did, Rock Star is definitely one of the movies you want to watch. The others? Keep coming back and I'll tell you about those other movies that, let's face it, you've probably already seen and loved.
1 comment:
Ya sé q esto más q comment va a parecer essay, pero tengo q explayarme.
Aunq sabía d la existencia d Mark Wahlberg, yo nunca había visto una peli con él (dígase "Fear", "Planet of the Apes", etc.) hasta q vi ésta, claro, unos años después d su estreno. I must say, it was love at first scream when I saw Mark-Izzy, and not only did he become one of my greatest fictional crushes, but I also fell for the band. Y es q Steel Dragon, a pesar d no existir, es una bandota. Ves la película y t contagia ese entusiasmo: t dan ganas d buscar discos d Steel Dragon, d ir a sus conciertos, d volverte fan. Steel Dragon es una banda q se ganó muy a pulso su lugar junto a las mejores bandas ficticias como Spinal Tap y Stillwater, y si la película no les dio a los productores un éxito, a los rockers nos dio un (que digo uno? más!) rolón: "We All Die Young", q es una d mis canciones favoritas d todos los tiempos.
Y ahí le dejo q esto ya está más largo q tu post.
STAND UP AND SHOOOOOOOOOOOOUT!!!
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