
In 1987, Sherrie Christian (Julianne Hough) travels from Oklahoma to Los Angeles with dreams of becoming a famous singer. After getting mugged, she meets Drew Boiley (Diego Boneta) and he finds a way to get her hired in the popular nightclub, The Bourbon Room where he also works. The club's owner, Dennis Dupree (Alec Baldwin), and his right-hand man, Lonny Barnett (Russell Brand) arrange for Stacee Jaxx (Tom Cruise) to have his last performance at the Bourbon Room. Patricia Whitman (Catherine Zeta-Jones), the religious conservative wife of the mayor (Bryan Cranston), organizes her church to protest and stop Stacee Jaxx from performing. As Drew gets his chance to become famous by becoming the opening act on Stacee Jaxx, he finds himself torn between love and fame.
"Rock of Ages" fails to make any headway for its big screen adaptation because it certainly feels like a novelty watch more than anything else. You know the film performed badly when even the song and dance numbers sometimes fail to capture your attention. At fault here is mostly the director as the film lacks any proper pacing or plot development by concentrating on the lesser important parts (the first act specifically). The film gets better in its last quarter, though ironically, because it seems that it wanted to end the whole thing quickly and abruptly. Some characters are also completely forgotten like the mayor who only has a few quick scenes during the 2 hour run time. For a character that we thought had an important in the overall story arc, it's mind-boggling that he completely disappeared. It's not all bad for "Rock of Ages" though. The acting, the singing and the production were actually good most of the time and it had its moments were both comedy and music jived together for a remarkable experience. Our favorite is Alec Baldwin's and Russel Brand's take on REO Speedwagon's "Can't Fight This Feeling". That scene is what the whole "Rock of Ages" adaptation should have felt like from start to finish. Sadly, experiences like that are few and far between.
Rating: 3 reels

Why you should watch it:
- well obviously, the song and dance numbers are definitely the reasons why you should watch this
- the film had numerous occasions were we couldn't stop laughing especially with Russell Brand's humor
Why you shouldn't watch it:
- the film feels like a bore at times - even with rock tunes blaring and dance numbers blazing
- some characters were under-utilized and completely forgotten
Tags
Alec Baldwin
broadway
Catherine Zeta-Jones
Diego Boneta
Julianne Hough
Malin Åkerman
Mary J. Blige
movie review
musical
Paul Giamatti
Rock of Ages
Russell Brand
Tom Cruise