School of Rock

Starring: Jack Black, Joan Cusack, Mike White, Sarah Silverman, Kevin Alexander Clark

Directed by: Richard Linklater

RS: 3of 4 Stars Average User Rating: 3.5of 4 Stars

2003 Comedy

Personally, if my kids went to a school of rock where they learned that Yes were cool, I'd firebomb the school board. But the movie works because Jack Black gives a virtuoso one-man show as a metalhead substitute teacher. There's something weirdly mean-spirited about the movie -- the white kids learn to rock, and the black kids learn to be bodyguards or backup singers. Hell, The Bad News Bears let the whole team get into the game, why can't School of Rock? Yet Black's manic riffing is the comedy equivalent of Eddie Van Halen's "Eruption" solo. As Tenacious D fans know, Black's secret is to combine shameless egomania with humane warmth -- he makes you wish you had a Jack Black of your own to follow you around and tell you how hard you rock. Major drag: Sarah Silverman, who was always so funny on Mr. Show, proves again that the odds of her getting a worthy role in a Hollywood movie are roughly the same as Jack Black making a sequel called School of Water Ballet.

ROB SHEFFIELD
(February 25, 2004)

(Posted: Feb 24, 2004)

Your Turn

Give us your review of
School of Rock

Review 1 of 1

4of 4 Stars

What do you have against Yes, Travers?
This is Jack Black's best MOVIE, performance, and performance (ROCK performance that is). It's alot better than TENACIOUS D (I still like that movie though). I also like that there's alot of praise for ZEPPELIN. That's, like, all I need In a movie: any LED-ZEPPELIN reference.

Jun 15, 2008 14:46:16

Previous Next