The School of Rock is that rare thing: a kid’s film that doesn’t patronise its target audience and has enough wit to entertain adults.
Jack Black is outstanding as Dewey Finn, a slacker guitarist who is kicked out of his metal band and, faced with a mountain of debt and depression, pretends to be his roommate, Ned Schneebly (a substitute teacher) and accepts a job as a supply teacher at Horace Green – a snobbish private elementary school – where his attitude and hijinks have a powerful result on his students.
Discovering that his sheltered, nerdy fifth-grade students are talented young musicians, he introduces them to the joys of rock ‘n’ roll and forms a rock band with them to win the $20,000 prize money in a local Battle of the Bands contest.
Joan Cusack provides excellent comic support as the uptight but by no means unsympathetic headmistress, Rosalie Mullins.
Director Richard Linklater deftly avoids the schmaltz and pre-programmed plotlines that can ruin this kind of film, and gets plenty of enjoyable, natural performances from his young cast.
Produced on a $35 million budget, the film grossed $131.3 million worldwide. For over a decade, it held the record as the highest-grossing music-themed comedy of all time.
The film has since spawned a massive global franchise, including a highly successful Broadway musical adaptation with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, and a Nickelodeon television series that ran from 2016 to 2018.
Of course, the real unsung hero of The School of Rock is the promoter who got about 2,000 people to attend a Battle of the Bands on a weekday morning!
Dewey Finn
Jack Black Theo
Adam Pascal Neil
Lucas Papaelias Doug
Chris Stack Patty Di Marco
Sarah Silverman Ned Schneebly
Mike White Spider
Lucas Babin Principal Rosalie “Roz” Mullins
Joan Cusack Michelle
Jordan-Claire Green Eleni
Veronica Afflerbach Summer “Tinkerbell” Hathaway
Miranda Cosgrove Zack “Zack Attack” Mooneyham
Joey Gaydos Jr. Lawrence “Mr Cool”
Robert Tsai Frankie
Angelo Massagli Freddy “Spazzy McGee” Jones
Kevin Clark Tomika “Turkey Sub”
Maryam Hassan Marta “Blondie”
Caitlin Hale Leonard
Cole Hawkins Billy “Fancy Pants”
Brian Falduto Marco
James Hosey Alicia “Brace Face”
Aleisha Allen Gordon
Zachary Infante Katie “Posh Spice”
Rivkah Reyes Emily
Jaclyn Neidenthal Tomika’s Mother
Suzzanne Douglas Mrs Sheinkopf
Kimberly Grigsby Mr Green
Lee Wilkof Mrs Lemmons
Kate McGregor-Stewart Zack’s Father
Tim Hopper Max
Crash Cortez Razor
Nicky Katt Tony
John Highsmith Sheila
Heather Goldenhersh Alicia’s Mother
Sharon Washington Leonard’s Mother
Kim Brockington Freddy’s Mother
Kathleen McNenny Summer’s Mother
Joanna Adler Lawrence’s Father
Robert Lin Mrs Haynish
Amy Sedaris Toby
Kyle Meaney
Director
Richard Linklater
Video
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Jack Black is outstanding as Dewey Finn, a slacker guitarist who is kicked out of his metal band and, faced with a mountain of debt and depression, pretends to be his roommate, Ned Schneebly (a substitute teacher) and accepts a job as a supply teacher at Horace Green – a snobbish private elementary school – where his attitude and hijinks have a powerful result on his students.
Produced on a $35 million budget, the film grossed $131.3 million worldwide. For over a decade, it held the record as the highest-grossing music-themed comedy of all time.
