By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 3 cats
Director: Don Argott
Country: united_states
Year: 2005
Running time: 93
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0436727/combined
Hilary says: “This docu introduces Paul Green, a Philadelphia man who runs his eponymous School of Rock Music, an after-school program for 9- to 17-year-olds.
“Green, himself a frustrated musician, is by turns a nurturing and harsh teacher to his young students, gushing about their talent one minute and screaming profanities at them the next. Among his students are a wildly proficient 12-year-old guitarist who steals the show at a ‘Guitar Gods’ tribute; 9-year-old twins whose perform as Ozzy Osborne in a Black Sabbath review, carefully made up by their mother; an unfocused, angst-y high school boy who attends for the social aspect more than the lessons; and the multi-talented daughter of one of the instructors trying to balance her Quaker upbringing with her ability to rawk.
“Predictably there are many funny moments, and many moments that you marvel at the talent and dedication of the kids. In particular, the group that is chosen to perform at an annual Germany Frank Zappa tribute, Zappanale, was rather impressive.
“Fun concept and some impressive musical perfs, though Green’s brash egotism and growing insecurities are not appealing to watch. 3 cats”
Michael says: “ROCK SCHOOL is an entertaining film, but it wasn’t very complex or memorable. Don Argott tells the story of Phil Green, a musician who teaches kids to be guitar gods a la Black Sabbath and Frank Zappa. We see a range of kids, from the young Quaker who evolves from playing Sheryl Crow in coffee houses to ripping through the guitar licks of Frank Zappa; to social misfit Bill, who comes from a broken home, no friends, little musical talent, but who finds community among the students. I read one review of ROCK SCHOOL that says, ‘review the film, not the man,’ referring to the abrasive nature and questionable
teaching style of Green, and it’s true, Green is pretty hard to take, but the movie, while entertaining, doesn’t achieve the quality of many other docs out there. 3 cats”