Rock Star (2001)

Lead singer of a tribute band becomes lead singer of the real band he idolizes.

Director:

Stephen Herek

Writer:

John Stockwell

Stars:

Mark Wahlberg, Jennifer Aniston, Dominic West

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Mark Wahlberg	...	Chris 'Izzy' Cole
Jennifer Aniston	...	Emily Poule
Dominic West	...	Kirk Cuddy, Steel Dragon Guitarist
Jason Bonham	...	A.C., Steel Dragon Drummer
Jeff Pilson	...	Jorgen, Steel Dragon Bassist
Zakk Wylde	...	Ghode, Steel Dragon Guitarist
Timothy Spall	...	Mats, Steel Dragon Road Manager
Blas Elias	...	Donny Johnson, Blood Pollution Drummer
Nick Catanese	...	Xander Cummins, Blood Pollution Guitarist
Brian Vander Ark	...	Ricki Bell, Blood Pollution Bassist
Timothy Olyphant	...	Rob Malcolm, Blood Pollution Guitarist
Dagmara Dominczyk	...	Tania Asher, Steel Dragon Public Relations
Matthew Glave	...	Joe Cole
Michael Shamus Wiles	...	Mr. Cole
Beth Grant	...	Mrs. Cole

Storyline

Chris Cole was born to rock. His longtime girlfriend Emily believes his talent could take him all the way - but Chris worships at the altar of Bobby Beers, the fiery frontman for heavy metal legends Steel Dragon. By day, Chris still lives at home with his parents and spends his days repairing copy machines. But when Chris takes the stage, fronting Pennsylvania's premiere Steel Dragon tribute band, all of that disappears. Chris Cole is Bobby Beers - mesmerizing audiences with his perfect imitation of Beers' electrifying vocals. The night his bandmates boot him out of the group, Chris is devastated - until an unexpected phone call changes his life forever: He, Chris Cole, has been tapped to replace Bobby Beers as the lead singer of Steel Dragon. In an instant, Chris rockets to the dizzying heights of sudden stardom, rising from devotee to icon, from rock fan to rock god - the wanna-be who got to be. So what happens when an average guy gets everything he wants - and discovers it's not ...

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Plot Keywords:

tribute band | cover band | heavy metal | rock star | rain | 

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Taglines:

Dream big. Live the life.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Music

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language, sexuality and some drug content

Details

Official Sites:

Blood Pollution Karaoke machine

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

7 September 2001 (USA)

Also Known As:

Metal God

Filming Locations:

California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$57,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£294,973 (UK) (11 January 2002)

Gross:

£536,444 (UK) (18 January 2002)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros., Bel Air Entertainment, Maysville Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Fortunately for Mark Wahlberg, he hung out with enough rock gods during his 'Marky Mark' days, among them 'Motley Crue''s lead singer Vince Neil, to know the drill. "I just took a crash course. I went and hung out with all of these guys," he says. " I was researching the part pretty early on, actually in the middle of shooting The Perfect Storm. I just went to as many concerts as I could and hung out with these guys."

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Goofs

After Izzy falls down the stairs, his head is bleeding. He walks backstage after the first song, wipes nearly all the blood off his face. Back onstage 2 seconds later, and he has blood all over his forehead and face. This is NOT a goof, due to the scalp being highly vascular, and thus bleeds profusely from any cut.

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Quotes

Chris: I don't want to be in some cut-rate cover band that butchers the music the people come to hear, just so you can play your crappy originals!
Rob: Crappy originals? I think "Whole and a half" kicks ass, and I'm proud as shit to have written it.
Chris: Yeah? I guess that's why we get so many requests for it.

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Crazy Credits

Repeated outtakes of the reporter.

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Connections

Spoofs Das Boot (1981)

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Soundtracks

"Blood Pollution"
Written by Jeordie White
Produced by Tom Werman
Performed by Steel Dragon

User Reviews

Comic book cynicism

Surprisingly well-acted, well-written movie about hard rockin'-but-decent young man getting that much-hoped-for ticket to stardom: his favorite heavy metal band wants him to replace their lead singer. Not far-fetched, the film tries keeping things in perspective and doesn't go over-the-top; it certainly makes you think twice about those lingering adolescent fantasies about being in the music business. But the script, despite solid dialogue, follows a tried-and-true, formulaic pattern, and gets bogged down by its own clichés in the final act. I enjoyed it much more than the sugary fluffball "Almost Famous". It has a nice, bitter edge to go with its heavy metal decadence, but a stronger finish might've made it more memorable. **1/2 from ****