Rock Star **1/2
Directed by: Stephen Herek
Written by: John Stockwell
Starring:Mark Wahlberg, Jennifer Aniston, Zakk Wylde, Jason Bonham, Timothy Spall
Rated R (brief nudity, rock and roll lifestyle)

Briefly, Rock Star is a fairy tale. It's not really about rock and roll. It's about a male Cinderella (a Cinderfella, if you will, and if you don't mind a Jerry Lewis reference) who, instead of marrying a prince, marries a rock band... but at what cost?

This movie has several hurdles to clear -- This Is Spinal Tap, Wayne's World 2, and "VH1's Behind The Music". The audience already knows what happens in a rock and roll band. Thankfully, the movie isn't out to top anything or be a cautionary tale. It's just there to entertain.

If you've seen any trailers for this movie, you'll know what the story is: Chris Cole (Wahlberg) is the lead singer of a Steel Dragons tribute (NOT cover) band called Blood Pollution. When the lead singer for SD is fired, Cole is recruited to join as the new lead singer. Begin rise of fame. During his career with SD, his relationship with his girlfriend/manager Emily (Aniston) is strained. Will things work out? Will Steel Dragons be able to keep fans with a new lead singer? WILL HAIR METAL SURVIVE? All of these questions will be answered in the movie, if not here.

Although the movie is based around a fictional band, certain activities didn't need to be made up. Just as Hannibal Lecter is a combination of several serial killers, Steel Dragons is based on several metal bands. Nods are given to Judas Priest, Black Flag, Metallica, Led Zeppelin, The Who, Guns 'n' Roses, Van Halen, and probably a host of others I can't think of right now. Adding to Rock Star's r&r credibilty is the casting of Zakk Wylde (one of Ozzy Osbourne's guitarists) and Jason Bonham (a drummer, and son of late Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham). So, the music is going to be of high quality, regardless of your feelings towards hair metal as a genre.

The movie is set in the mid-1980s, when post-glam hair metal was making big strides in top-40 music. This distinction is very important. Steel Dragons is not Twisted Sister or Motley Crue or Judas Priest or Metallica. It's more in the vein of Def Leppard or Winger or Bon Jovi. Girls will like this band. Cole (who is known to the public as Izzy) will not scare girls like Lemmy from Motorhead. The time that the movie is doubly important in that it happens before hair metal becomes a parody of itself, and, even more importantly, before the dread beast from the Northwest emerges from Seattle. It happens during the glory days of hair metal. Power ballads? Absolutely. Guitarists moving in unison? You bet. Tight leather pants? Oh, yeah. Once upon a time, this was actually cool, and not campy or homoerotic. Well, in retrospect, it was always homoerotic, but girls still liked it. And, that's what rock and roll is all about.

However, it's not what the movie is about -- it is about, to steal the tagline, "a wannabe who got to be". Here's where the movie tends to disappoint. The cast was incredibly talented, but the characters are fairly one-dimensional. Which is not to say that the performances were bad -- some of the scenes were incredibly passionate, but I would have liked to have seen more character in the characters. Chris Cole is, to put it bluntly, a geek. He knows things about Steel Dragons that would put a Trekkie who sleeps in his Spock ears and could write a 20-page dissertation on why Kirk is a far better captain than Picard to shame. Details about the color of the thread in costumes, what year and tour a particular outfit was worn, not to mention lyrics and choreography. This kid is devoted to his dream. Emily has a head for business, and is devoted to Chris. I really would have liked to have seen more backstory between these two characters. As they were written, however, I felt just a little bit left out. The character of Miggs (Spall) however, was just about perfect. He is THE roadie. Not the god-of-all-roadies that we saw in Wayne's World 2, but just a guy who can get the job done. And, of course, as this is a fairy tale, he is as close as we come to a fairy godmother.

If you're looking for a good character study within an industry, watch Boogie Nights. If you're looking for a date movie, Rock Star is probably better. And less awkward.