School of Rock is among the best comedies this century. This century is less than 20 years old but still, that's among hundreds of successful and failed comedies. It's still impressive is my point. With Jack Black back in theaters this weekend I decided to take a look back at my favorite piece of his work as a leading man. That, undoubtedly is School of Rock. While Black is arguably better in his supporting role in High Fidelity or his leading role in the little seen indie movie Bernie, School of Rock is the perfect distillation of Jack Black as a movie star, a comic, and an actor.
School of Rock stars Jack Black as Dewey Finn, a faltering rock star whose just been kicked out the band he started. With no gigs coming and no job, Dewey is facing eviction from the small corner of his friend Ned's (Mike White) apartment. Dewey is desperately at odds with Ned's bossy new girlfriend, Patti (Sarah Silverman) who is pushing soft touch Ned to throw Dewey out if he can't come up with rent. When Dewey fails in his attempt to hock his guitar, he appears to be completely out of options. Then, luck strikes when Dewey intercepts a call for Ned about a substitute teaching job at a tony, high priced private school.
Seeing teaching as an easy gig that will pay enough to keep him in his home, Dewey impersonates Ned and takes the job. Once in the job, Dewey figures he can coast just sitting behind the desk and sending the kids on recess. Then he hears the kids playing music in music class and he hatches a crazy plan. Utilizing his seemingly unlimited knowledge of rock n'roll, Dewey will transform these pre-teens into the kind of rock n'roll band that he can use to stick it to his former band and compete at a battle of the bands for a $20,000 grand prize.
Naturally, through the bond of music Dewey comes to gain a new maturity and sensitivity while the kids discover new talents and confidence within themselves. This is a stock arc that dates back to the silent movie era. It's the kind of stock uplift that you see in television pilots and in Lifetime channel comedies. All of that said, the key is taking these stock elements and building on them and that is exactly what director Richard Linklater and writer Mike White do in School of Rock. The basic structure is strong and yet loose enough to allow Jack Black to shine and improvise and deliver the kind of loose and fun performance that made him a star.
Jack Black is not a star for everyone. His spastic dancing, his odd affectations and often bizarre manner can grate on some audiences. I happen to be a big fan of Jack Black's tics and tricks. I enjoy his strange energetic performances which recall Jim Carrey in the Ace Ventura movies but with pathos and a more recognizable personality. Black is absolutely hysterical as Dewey. His massive personality pops off the screen from the first moment and Jack Black plus a classroom of cute kids is a recipe for comic gold. Black himself is a big kid and he throws himself into both the role of manchild best friend and budding grown up.
The kids are something of a faceless mass but a couple stand out. Miranda Cosgrover, the future star of the not bad at all I-Carly, is completely adorable as the business smart grade grubber Summer. I adored the scene where Cosgrove approaches Dewey to confront him about assigning her the role of Groupie for the band project. It's a really funny scene and she nails it. The other stand out for me was Maryam Hassan as Tomika, the shy but super talented singer whom Dewey inspires to come out her shell and come out with her incredibly big and bold voice. It's shocking to find out she never acted again and carries no other IMDB credits after 2003.
Richard Linklater's best work tends to be small and independent. He doesn't appear comfortable as a mainstream director working for a studio. School of Rock is the rare exception where Linklater lends his considerable talent well to a mainstream feature film. It helps that Mike White gave him a strong and funky script to work with and that he had Jack Black at the height of his powers, but there is still plenty to indicate his strong directorial hand at work. In his other mainstream work such as the remake of Bad News Bears, Linklater doesn't appear nearly as engaged in the process and it shows in the lackadaisical plodding pace of that film. School of Rock is like an unstoppable rocket whole Bad News Bears was a massive dud.
Recently, Andrew Lloyd Webber of all people turned School of Rock into a Broadway sensation. The original idea for the film was for it to be a musical and now Webber and his creative team are realizing that original vision. It says something however, about the strengths of School of Rock that it could be so radically reimagined and still become one of the iconic comedies of this young century. School of Rock is a buzzy, energetic and wildly funny movie. I stand by the statement that this is one of the best comedies of the last 20 years. Watch it for yourself and you will see a very basic story told with great invention, energy, love and passion. What more can we ask of a great comedy?
