Movie Review: School of Rock
Rated by 7 members
Common Sense Media Review
If there was ever someone born to portray the true spirit of
rock and roll, it is
Jack
Black. In this movie, that is what they needed, and that is
just what he does.
Black plays Dewey Finn, a musician who doesn't just live for rock -- he barely acknowledges that there is anything else. Like the music he loves, Dewey is loud, immature, messy, self-absorbed, passionate, incapable of complying with any authority, rule, or attempt at civilization, and just about irresistible. Dewey's love for the music is so pure and so complete that it is impossible for him to imagine that everyone might not support him.
That is why he is astonished when he is fired by his band and when his best friend Ned (screenwriter Mike White) tells him that if he does not start paying rent, he will have to move out. Ned was once a rocker with a group called Maggots of Death, but now he is a substitute teacher with a girlfriend and tells Dewey it is time to grow up.
So, when Dewey intercepts a call from Principal Mullins ( Joan Cusack) offering Ned a substitute teacher position for fifth graders at a posh prep school, he accepts and shows up pretending to be Ned.
Of course he thinks he will just snooze through the classes and of course his students will be appalled (but also a little bit thrilled) by his sense of anarchy. When he tears down the neatly lettered class list of stars and demerits, they are stunned. They look around as though waiting for lightning to strike, a sort of ultimate demerit. But fifth graders are just young enough to trust their teacher and just old enough to be enthralled when he tells them that their secret new project will be to spend the entire school day creating a rock band. Once he assures them that this will impress the admissions office at Harvard, they are all on board.
Soon, everyone in the class is a part of the band, with guitar wizard Zach, back-up singers, roadies, groupies, and a stylist. The kids learn something about the history of rock, something about music, and quite a bit about expressing themselves. And Dewey learns something about what it really means to be part of a band.
This is by far the most accessible and conventional film from director Richard Linklater ( Waking Life , Dazed and Confused) and White ( Chuck and Buck, The Good Girl ), neither of whom are known for heartwarming, feel-good movies. But that is what this is, a sort of To Sir With Love crossed with This is Spinal Tap. Black is enormously entertaining and the kids are terrific.
Families who enjoy this movie will also enjoy The Commitments and This is Spinal Tap , as well as Black's performance as a devoted music fan in High Fidelity (all for mature audiences). Families might also like to see some very different movies about music teachers who touch the lives of students, such as Music of the Heart and Mr. Holland's Opus.
What Parents Should Know
Parents need to know that this movie includes some strong
language, alcohol abuse, and drug references. There is some
rude humor. The overall theme of jettisoning schoolwork for
rock and roll may also be a concern.
Families who see this movie can talk about how much Dewey loves rock and roll. Why is it so important to him? What does it allow him to express? What is the most important thing he learned from the kids, and what is the most important thing they learned from him?
Common Sense Media is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing information to help parents make media and entertainment choices for their families.
