Mom Movie Review: Rock of Ages

I'm a child of the 80's and ever since I saw the trailer for Rock of Ages, I've been pretty pumped. I knew it would be loaded with those great tunes from the 80's metal hair bands that I grew up on. I also wanted to see how Tom Cruise would fare in this flick three decades after skating into the big screen in his whitey tighties in Risky Business.


My oldest, age 18, is as big a fan of 80's music as I am, so I knew I'd be taking him along when it came out. I also thought about taking my just turned 13-year-old, as well. I'm glad I didn't. The drug themes and strip club scenes even made me squirm a little next to my grown-up son. It's definitely not family friendly and well-earned the PG-13 rating.


Beyond that, and just viewing it not as a mom, but as a 30-something who loved this kind of music and loved  Tom Cruise when I was a pre-teen, it was fun. I didn't realize until I looked it up the day we were heading to the theater that it was based on a musical of the same name. Didn't realize such a musical existed. 


So, seeing that it was a musical, it was pretty much full of over-the-top corny numbers of cheesy karaoke-like renditions of 80's hits. That's okay, I happen to love over-the-top, cheesy and corny. Julianne Hough is nothing short of adorable. Diego Boneta was a fresh face with some awesome pipes, a couple times my son commented on how closely his voice matched REO Speedwagon's as he sang. Tom Cruise was dark and just plain weird, but that's what the role called for and he pulled it off pretty well, even doing his own vocals, which in some scenes I was pretty darned impressed with. (so much so that I went home afterwards and listened to the soundtrack samples online more than a few times.) I wasn't crazy about Catherine-Zeta Jones, but Alec Baldwin and Russell Brand were a hilarious duo. 


If, like me, you grew up on this music and are nostalgic, sappy and a little cheesy, you'll likely enjoy yourself. Just leave the kiddies at home and make it a girl's night out.


On a scale of 1 to 10 buckets of popcorn, I give "Rock of Ages" 6 buckets.

Mom Movie Review: Johnny English

Rowan Atkinson is one of the funniest men alive. Best known for his Mr. Bean character, he is a master in physical comedy and says so much through non-verbal methods. Johnny English (2003) is a speaking role where Atkinson plays a clumsy and unlucky government agent who is given an important assignment by default.

A Bond-spoof that is pulled off well by Atkinson, sidekick Ben Miller and which also stars the incomparable John Malkovich provides a dose of British humor that a lot of Americans may not "get," but is hysterical to the audience that appreciates his timing and comedic talent. Full of action, but also full of laughs, this movie will be a favorite of young and old. It's really funny without being vulgar, something that you don't always find in American comedies.

A 2011 sequel didn't fare well in the U.S. even though he has a huge world-wide fan base.

On a scale of 1 to 10 buckets of popcorn: I give Johnny English 8 buckets.