SCHOOL OF ROCK - TV Film Review 4/12/06

Needing a 2-hour filler before "Torchwood" was on; this fit the bill nicely and was bound to be amusing in equal measures and was even more surprising, when I found out that it was actually based on a "true story" no less! Bringing Jack Black to further prominence in Hollywood his literally manic performance goes way overboard as a slacker who manages to inspire a group of school children into a different appreciation of music and how to express themselves.

With a total suspension of belief (and you'll need that!) we get a fairly warm comedy that doesn't really get too insipid and turns out overall quite enlightening in an entertaining way. Gene Simmons (Of "Kiss" fame) eventually used this as a template (presumably?) for the Reality Show version.