School of Rock

School of Rock
School of Rock official movie poster
Directed by	Richard Linklater
Written by	Mike White
Produced by	Scott Aversano Steve Nicolaides Scott Rudin
Starring	Jack Black Joan Cusack Mike White Miranda Cosgrove Sarah Silverman
Cinematography	Rogier Stoffers
Edited by	Sandra Adair
Music by	Craig Wedren
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures
Release date	October 3, 2003
Running time	108 min.
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$35,000,000 (estimated)
Box office	$81,261,177 (domestically) $131,282,949 (worldwide)

School of Rock, also called The School of Rock, is a 2003 American musical comedy film directed by Richard Linklater, written by Mike White, and starring Jack Black. The main plot centers around hard rock singer and guitarist, Dewey Finn (portrayed by Black), who is unanimously kicked out of his band and subsequently disguises himself as a substitute teacher at a prestigious prep school and forms a band of fifth-grade students to win the upcoming Battle of the Bands so he can pay his rent for his apartment.

Plot summary

Dewey Finn, a hard rock singer and guitarist, is unanimously kicked out of his band No Vacancy by his bandmates for his arrogance and frequent hyperactive stage antics. His submissive roommate and lifelong friend Ned Schneebly (writer Mike White), a substitute teacher, is pressured by his girlfriend Patty Di Marco (Sarah Silverman) to evict Dewey unless he "gets a real job" and pay off his growing rent debt, which he only promises to do out of sympathy to Ned because of his fear of never getting another girlfriend. Dewey feels forced to give up his passion until he receives a phone call intended for Ned from Rosalie Mullins (Joan Cusack), principal of Horace Green, a prestigious prep school in Woodbury, New York, asking Ned to fill in for a teacher who would be out for several weeks due to a broken leg. Desperate for income to avoid getting evicted, Dewey pretends to be Ned and takes the job as a substitute teacher for the fifth-grade class.

Dewey has no real idea how to carry out his role as a teacher, and instead simply gives his students constant free time. However, when he overhears his pupils playing in music class he realizes that the children of his class are musically talented. He decides to turn his temporary job into what he tells them is a special class project, but is actually a personal one: to turn a classroom full of kids into a rock band and crew, which will serve as a vehicle to stardom, ultimately to win the upcoming Battle of the Bands, where he is out to avenge his eviction from his old band and win the $20,000 prize. After realizing that the kids are mostly interested in pop and rap music, Dewey turns the school days into lessons of rock history and music playing, exposing his students to those artists he regards as rock legends. Many rock legends are featured in classic photos and footage during a montage scene, including The Ramones, Jimi Hendrix, Iggy Pop, Pete Townshend, Angus Young, The Clash and Buddy Rich.

Dewey narrowly escapes detection when Ms. Mullins decides to attend one of his class's lessons to check on their progress, forcing him to actually teach the official course material. Dewey attempts to revive any old love for rock he finds in her, having found out that she likes Stevie Nicks and playing her song "Edge of Seventeen" on a jukebox. The two develop a close friendship after this. Meanwhile, the class audition for the Battle of the Bands, which Dewey told them was their "school project". They are turned back because they show up too late. With Summer's help, Dewey persuades the Battle's managers by lying that the students are all terminally ill with "stick-it-to-da-man-ni-osis", a fictional rare blood disease, and out of compassion, they allow the students to perform in the Battle of the Bands.

However, later that day, Dewey (who had requested on multiple occasions that he be paid in cash) is exposed when Ned receives a paycheck from Horace Green in the mail, knowing he has never worked there. During the parent-teacher night later on, Dewey meets the students' parents, who initially seem very suspicious of his ability to teach their children. Dewey succeeds in convincing them that he is a competent teacher, but Ned appears and confronts Dewey (due almost entirely to his girlfriend's persuasion). His real identity is revealed, and he is fired from the school. Considering himself a failure, he falls into depression, only recovering when the students, on their way to the Battle of the Bands via school bus, plead with him to join them. Realising what has happened, Ned finally stands up to his girlfriend and leaves her to watch the concert.

At the competition, the band plays "School of Rock", a song written by their lead guitarist Zack Mooneyham, instead of Dewey's "In the End of Time". Despite the strong reception from the audience (including Ms Mullins and the students' parents, who thought Dewey abducted the kids), the class loses to Dewey's ex-band No Vacancy, but accept their defeat. The crowd becomes angered by No Vacancy's victory and call for School of Rock to come back on stage. The band goes for an encore, playing "It's a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock 'n' Roll)" by AC/DC with an altered ending. In the ending sequence, Summer is seen arguing a deal over her cell phone as she enters the "School of Rock", a newly opened after-school program where Dewey continues to coach the band and Ned teaches the younger ones, and the credits roll as the band sings "The movie is over, but we're still on screen," breaking the fourth wall.

Characters

• Dewey Finn (Jack Black) - The protagonist of the film. Nicknamed "Mr. S" after persuading the class that he is the real Ned Schneebly (as he was unable to spell the surname), Dewey is a down-on-his-luck, energetic, 30-year-old, wannabe rock superstar who is unanimously voted out of his band No Vacancy due to his antics and is replaced with a guitarist named Spider. When Ned's girlfriend demands he pay up his share of the rent or get out, he pretends to be Ned as a substitute at the high-brow Horace Green Elementary. His main objective in the movie is to create a rock band from the Horace Green fifth grade class, after previous attempts to pull together a band failed, and take revenge on his doubting former band members and win the Battle of the Bands.
• Rosalie "Roz" Mullins (Joan Cusack) - The very uptight principal of Horace Green Elementary. It is revealed that she was "not always wound this tight", but the pressure of the parents wanting everything to be perfect has made her into someone she never wanted to be. She is always strictly dressed. At one point she is seen wearing a blouse and necktie with a tightly buttoned blazer. She also is often seen wearing a turtleneck sweater, sometimes under a blazer.
• Ned Schneebly (Mike White) - Ned is Dewey's roommate and best friend. He is described as a pushover by his girlfriend, Patty, because he gives Dewey many chances to pay the rent and lets him stay on account of the fact that he does not like confrontation and because Dewey is his best friend. Ned does not really mind the fact that Dewey mooches off him but is afraid his girlfriend will leave him, and as such he constantly apologizes to Dewey and his girlfriend. He and Dewey used to be in a Glam rock band called Maggot-Death together, but Ned gave up those dreams for what he and Patty consider to be something more sensible, but he admits near the end of the film that he misses performing. He breaks up with Patty and stands up for himself by ignoring her lecturing him and going to watch the band's performance. He continues to teach at the after school club he and Dewey open together, where he teaches children about music.
• Patty Di Marco (Sarah Silverman) - Ned's mean girlfriend and the film's primary antagonist. Patty works for the mayor. She makes no secret of her hatred for Dewey, constantly berating him for his lack of a proper job and inability to pay rent. Dewey brings out the worst in her, and Ned walks out on her daily tirade and breaks up with her in the end.
• Zack Mooneyham (Joey Gaydos Jr.) - The talented but shy lead guitarist of the School of Rock. His overbearing father has a large and domineering influence on him and his hobbies and education. Dewey is quoted saying "He's the next Hendrix" about Zack during the later half of the movie.
• Summer Hathaway (Miranda Cosgrove) - The class factotum, Summer is determined to please and succeed, even if it means using somewhat unethical means. She is designated by Dewey as the band manager due to her threatening to tell her mother, a room parent, that he was being unfair to her by deeming her a groupie and during the latter half of the movie, Dewey says, "Summer is going to be the first woman president of the United States of America." At the end of the movie, she has taken on a full managerial tone and responsibility for the musical direction of the band.
• Freddy Jones (Kevin Clark) - The "rebel without a cause" and somewhat of a troublemaker drummer of the School of Rock. He likes to burn stuff for a pastime and went out to hang in a van with some rockers competing in the Battle of the Bands. It is this that provides the vehicle for Dewey to prove that he cares for the kids.
• Katie (Rebecca Julia Brown) - Originally a cellist, Katie takes up the bass guitar. Despite being a core member, her character does not really have many lines because she's portrayed as a quiet girl, but eagerly takes interest in rock music, citing Sheila E and Meg White as "good chick drummers". In the commentary, it is revealed during the credits she was supposed to have a solo, but it was cut out. It seems that due to her on-stage fashion and particularly the shape of her bass that she is an allusion to Talking Heads bassist Tina Weymouth
• Lawrence (Robert Tsai) - A quiet, awkward "boffin" who becomes the keyboardist for the band and undergoes a transformation to become a rockin' keyboardist. Dewey teaches him the handshake, partially consisting of "slap it; shoot it; caboot it!"
• Tomika (Maryam Hassan) - Not confident about her physique, later becomes "Songbird" after Dewey discovers her amazing singing talent when she admits to him in private that she does not want to be security detail, nor a roadie. She ends up being a backup singer for the band. Dewey privately informs her that he is also a bit overweight, justifying his own condition with the statement "I like to eat."
• Marta (Caitlin Hale) - Marta is another back-up singer, seemingly more lively than other classmates, showing off her voice with "Tomorrow" from the musical Annie.
• Alicia (Aleisha Allen) - Alicia volunteers her singing voice to become a back-up singer, "auditioning" with Amazing Grace.
• Billy (Brian Falduto) - Originally assigned security, the effeminate Billy requests he be band stylist instead and, being that he needed to keep the kids happy, Dewey agrees. Billy designs the uniforms for the show and is shown to work hard at the design. He vehemently voices his hatred for Dewey, but still works with the band. At the end of the film, he seems to have garnered a neutrality toward Dewey.
• Gordon (Zachary Infante) - Gordon is a roadie and is noted for his exceptional computer skills. He made the light show during the Battle of the Bands performance. He tends to get stressed easily when his plans don't work out, but Dewey inspires confidence in him.
• Marco (James Hosey) - Also a roadie with Gordon. He works the smoke machine during the Battle of the Bands performance.
• Frankie (Angelo Massagli) - At the beginning of the film, it appears he is good friends with Freddy, and the one who interacts/jokes with him the most. He works on security. In the beginning of the film, he is under the assumption that rock was about scoring with girls.
• Leonard (Cole Hawkins) - He works on security along with Frankie. His line "You mean we're not in the band?" initially encourages Dewey to transform the non-musicians in the class into members of the crew.
• Eleni and Michelle (Veronica Afflerbach and Jordan-Claire Green respectively) - Designated the groupies by Dewey, they are given the task of naming the band, which they are more than happy to do. They disclose the final name to Dewey by unrolling a T-shirt with a "School of Rock" emblem on it.
• Theo (Adam Pascal) - Theo is the leader of Dewey's old band "No Vacancy", though Dewey says he brought the band together, and he is the first one who suggested getting rid of Dewey. During the end of the movie, before learning they win the contest, Theo and his band members are very impressed with the performance which the children (of Dewey's band School of Rock) had put up and they personally congratulate/admire them.
• Spider (Lucas Babin) - Spider is the guitarist who replaces Dewey in "No Vacancy." At the Battle of the Bands, he is seen hitting on Miss Mullins, who does not understand his endeavor.
• Neil (Lucas Papaelias) - Neil is the bass player of the band "No Vacancy".

Inspiration

A stage dive gone wrong incident involving Ian Astbury of rock band The Cult was witnessed by Jack Black, and was used as inspiration for a scene in School of Rock, in which the character Dewey Finn, stage dives and hits the floor; "I went to see a reunion, in Los Angeles, of The Cult; they were playing and Ian Astbury, the lead singer, took a dive. It was at The Viper Room, and it was just a bunch of jaded Los Angelinos out there, and they didn't catch him and he plummeted straight to the ground. Later I thought it was so hilarious. So that was put into the script".

Production

Many scenes from the movie were shot around the New York City area. The school portrayed in School of Rock is actually Main Hall at Wagner College in Staten Island, New York.

Music

Soundtrack

Main article: School of Rock (soundtrack album)

A soundtrack album of the same name was released on September 30, 2003. The film's director Richard Linklater scouted the country for talented 13-year-old musicians to play the rock-and-roll music that features on the soundtrack and in the film.

One noteworthy feature of the soundtrack is the inclusion of Led Zeppelin's "Immigrant Song". Led Zeppelin has a history of not allowing their songs to be used for commercial purposes, and rarely give permission for anyone to use their songs, the only exception being filmmaker Cameron Crowe, who was the only person to write about them favorably while he was a writer for Rolling Stone magazine. To get permission, Richard Linklater came up with the idea to shoot a video on the stage used at the end of the film with Jack Black begging the band for permission and the crowd cheering and chanting behind him. The video was sent directly to Led Zeppelin, and permission was granted for the song. The video can be seen on the DVD extras.

Music featured within the film

• "For Those About To Rock" by AC/DC (Dewey uses the lyrics in a speech to the class)
• "Fight" by No Vacancy *
• "Stay Free" by The Clash
• "Touch Me" by The Doors *
• "Do You Remember Rock 'n' Roll Radio?" (Ramones cover) by Kiss
• "Sunshine of Your Love" by Cream *
• "Back in Black" by AC/DC
• "Iron Man" by Black Sabbath (riff Dewey plays to Zack)
• "Highway to Hell" by AC/DC (riff Dewey plays to Zack)
• "Smoke on the Water" by Deep Purple (riff Dewey plays to Zack)
• "Substitute" by The Who *
• "Greatest Love Of All" by Whitney Houston (Dewey mentions the lyrics as his reason for no testing)
• "Roadrunner" by The Modern Lovers
• "My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down (Bonzo Goes to Bitburg)" by Ramones *
• "The Wait" (Killing Joke cover) by Metallica

• "Sad Wings" by Brand New Sin
• "Mouthful of Love" by Young Heart Attack
• "Black Shuck" by The Darkness
• "Immigrant Song" by Led Zeppelin *
• "Set You Free" by The Black Keys *
• "Edge of Seventeen" by Stevie Nicks *
• "Ballrooms of Mars" by T. Rex *
• "Moonage Daydream" by David Bowie
• "TV Eye" by The Stooges *
• "Ride Into the Sun" by The Velvet Underground
• "Heal Me, I'm Heartsick" by No Vacancy *
• "School of Rock" by School of Rock *
• "It's a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock 'n' Roll)" (AC/DC cover) by School of Rock *
• "Math is a Wonderful thing" by Jack Black and Mike White
• "Teacher's Pet" by School of Rock

* Featured on the Soundtrack album

Reception

School of Rock was met with high critical acclaim and Black's performance was praised by most of the critics. It received a "Certified Fresh" rating of 91% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 186 reviews with an average rating of 7.7/10, and it fared even better with their selected top critics; out of 36 reviews, all but one were positive, which left the film with a rating of 97% with an average rating of 8.2/10. On Metacritic, the film has a rating of 82 out of 100 which indicates "universal acclaim".

Box office performance

The movie was a financial success. It grossed $131,282,949 internationally. The budget of the film was $35 million.

Awards and nominations

The film was nominated for several awards, including Black receiving Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor - Comedy or Musical (which he lost to Bill Murray for Lost in Translation), and winning an MTV Movie Award for Best Comedic Performance.

Sequel

On May 23, 2008, Jack Black revealed a sequel was in the works: "I'd really like to do it, the last one was great. We are seriously thinking about it; there's already a script. In a few weeks we have to decide if we go through with the project or not."

Variety reported on July 13, 2008 that Richard Linklater is attached to direct again, and Scott Rudin is returning as producer. Mike White, who penned the first, is writing the screenplay, titled "School of Rock 2: America Rocks," which picks up with Finn leading a group of summer school students on a cross-country field trip that delves into the history of rock 'n' roll and explores the roots of blues, rap, country and other genres.

School of Rock 2: America Rocks was confirmed by Paramount on July 14, 2008. However, on September 5, 2008, director Richard Linklater said the film "might not" happen at all and that Paramount just jumped the gun on the news.

On June 16, 2009, while promoting his new film Year One, Black commented on the development of the film, saying, "Yeah, there's development. We'll see. I don't know. I'm a little hesitant about doing a sequel. I had fun doing the first one, just don't want to do something because it's there. I want to do it because it's going to be really funny or better than the first one."

Legacy

A number of the children from the film continued to produce music, and have performed together as the School of Rock Kids, appearing on a Woodstock 40th anniversary tour and in the second season finale of the VH1 reality television series Celebrity Rehab Presents Sober House, during which they played with Kiss guitarist Ace Frehley and Guns N' Roses drummer Steven Adler.

External links

• Official website
• Template:Amg movie
• School of Rock at IMDb
• School of Rock at Rotten Tomatoes
• School of Rock at Box Office Mojo