Movie Review

The Rocker (PG-13)

Pete Hammond

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Hollywood.com Says
Just when you think the dog days of summer movies are upon us along comes a hilarious sleeper hit that should make The Office’s Rainn Wilson a movie star as well.

Story
Rainn Wilson trades one Office job for another as Robert “Fish” Fishman, an over-the-hill 41 year-old insurance company worker who came right to the edge of eternal rock fame as the drummer of a struggling ‘80s band Vesuvius--until the other members kicked him out in order to get a record deal. Twenty years later, the band has continued on to great success, while Fish only manages to get fired from his latest job, forcing him to move in with his sister (Jane Lynch) and family--including his nephew, the nerdy Matt (Josh Gad), who happens to be a member of his own band A.D.D. Turns out the group needs a drummer and asks the long-in-the-tooth Uncle Robert to join them, which he does reluctantly. Soon he is putting a soulful metal spin on their forgettable sound. The other members--Amelia (Emma Stone) and Curtis (Teddy Geiger)--aren’t too thrilled, especially when he eventually makes a play for Curtis’ mom (Christina Applegate). But when he is caught rehearsing with the band in the nude (via a four-way webcam), the video finds itself on You Tube, where A.D.D. suddenly becomes an exploitable phenom with the “naked drummer” as a draw. The inevitable tour leads to a climactic concert where revenge could be sweet when they share the bill with none other than--drumroll, please--Vesuvius.

Acting
Since Jack Black was apparently otherwise engaged, Wilson gets a lucky break and turns what could be an annoying one-dimensional boob into a guy we can root for. He’s never less than believable as this aging buffoon who gets a second chance at the dream he always knew he deserved but blew 20 years earlier. Wilson, playing a role not too dissimilar from his weekly gig as Dwight Schrute on The Office, nicely balances the broad comedic requirements of the role with genuine pathos and a pretty good musical talent that makes the second coming of this 40-ish rock star oddly credible. It helps that he’s surrounded by an appealing cast of younger actors who make up the rest of the band. Stone (Superbad, The House Bunny) is particularly appealing and completely winning. Geiger is the good-looking, tortured lead singer, while Gad makes us feel all the growing pains. Applegate is well cast but underused as Curtis’ mom, and there are some nice--if too brief--moments from Curb Your Enthusiasm’s Jeff Garlin and the always hilarious Jane Lynch as Matt’s parents. Turning up for an ironic cameo is the original ousted drummer from The Beatles, Pete Best (although the filmmakers swear this is not his story). Vesuvius is made up of comedy vets Fred Armisen, Bradley Cooper and Will Arnett. but they are no Spinal Tap.

Direction
Director Peter Cattaneo won universal praise and an Oscar nomination for his sleeper comedy hit The Full Monty, and he’s probably got sleeper on his hand, as he treads similar ground with the rags to riches scenario. He expertly displays how show business success can still come at a late age, but not TOO late. Cattaneo wisely focuses on the humanistic qualities of the story, blending some nice character work with the broader aspects of this School of Rock-style outing. It all could have gone south very quickly, but the director keeps his cast in check and makes the story one that doesn’t ever run out of gas. This is the rare flick that both teens AND their parents will find riotously entertaining for wildly different reasons.

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