It's delightful, it's delicious, it's dlevy!
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dpesick replied to your video: I saw Rock of Ages tonight, and I feel like I…
Huh. I thought it was the worst. Except for Mary J. Could have watched her for 2 hours instead of everyone else.
I had the distinct impression that large chunks of Mary J’s part were left on the cutting room floor. Like that weird scene that starts with her ex being escorted out of the strip club by police? Seemed like there was something missing before that. And then in the sad montage (I don’t remember the song, but everyone was sad and singing about how sad they were only they were probably singing about something less relevant because Jukebox!), Mary J. seemed really sad but we don’t know why she was sad except that she was stuck in this movie simply because they needed someone to add some soulful fills to some of the songs.
I saw Rock of Ages tonight, and I feel like I could write an entire master’s thesis on the film. Suffice it to say that if you’re a fan of the film genre I call “shlock opera” (think The Apple or Xanadu), you’ll find a lot to like in this film.
But I couldn’t help thinking that director Adam Shankman was consciously paying tribute to these films. And while I find that entirely hilarious and satisfying, given that not a single one of those shlock operas was a success (or even warmly remembered except by lovers of camp), it doesn’t seem like the best tack to take on a big budget film musical.
Anyway, now I’m watching Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, the film that most closely resembles Rock of Ages in terms of celebrity casting, ridiculous (mis)use of great songs, bad editing, plot holes, self-reference, and more. I believe all of the films I’ve made reference to in this post are available on Netflix Watch Instantly. I recommend them all… just not all at once.
