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| Available at Amazon.com |
First, there was the New Kids on the Block. Later, came the Backstreet Boys, N’Sync, and Hanson. But today the newest boy band that is sweeping the nation is the Jonas Brothers. Who are they? Ask anyone who watches the Disney Channel and they will tell you. They were once the opening act for Miley Cyrus a.k.a. Disney’s “Hannah Montana”, but now they are the latest “cash cow” for the Disney Channel. Realizing that the High School Musical franchise is about to come to an end, the Disney Channel knew they had to strike while the iron was hot, so to speak. So why not create a new musical dance movie franchise following the High School Musical formula and having the Jonas Brothers star in it? They did just that and it’s called Camp Rock.
In Camp Rock, Mitchie (Demi Lovato) is a musically-inclined teen hoping to have “a summer of music” at an infamous camp known as Camp Rock. But she can only afford to attend when her mother (Maria Canals-Barrera) gets the job of catering the food service. Mitchie has to help in the kitchen, and is embarrassed by it. This soon forces her to lie about her family so that she can join the “cool girl” group, lead by the mean rich girl Tess (Meaghan Jette Martin). But once Tess realizes that Mitchie has more talent than her, she figures out Mitchie’s secret. This forces Mitchie to tell the truth in front of everyone, including rock star Shane Gray (Joe Jonas) who is teaching dance at the camp and has become friends with Mitchie.
Surprisingly, only one member of the Jonas Brothers, Joe Jonas, is featured in this film. The other two brothers do make appearances in the film but this is not entirely the “Jonas Brothers movie”. It looks like the Disney Channel is hoping that the main star of this film, Demi Lovato, will become the next big breakout singing and acting star for them. She does the best she can with this role and comes across as extremely likable. So basically she does what she needs to do. The rest of the cast fits the remaining necessary pieces to the High School Musical movie puzzle. But everyone is really overacting here as you might expect. Thankfully, though, the characters portrayed here are not as over-the-top as some of the characters in HSM.
The story is predictable and pretty much like any other DCOM (Disney Channel Original Movie). It also follows closely the script for both High School Musical and every other camp film before it. This is basically a musical about making music, but that’s really just an excuse to showcase the singing of the Jonas Brothers and Demi Lovato. This being a Disney Channel movie, you know there has to be a message in it, and there are plenty of them in Camp Rock. There are lessons in integrity, honesty, self-respect, and friendship to be learned, and, of course, everything works out in the end.
Camp Rock is only for the “tween-aged” demographic. If you have anyone from the age of 7 to 16 in your house, they will probably love this film, especially if they are female. However, there are worse films they could watch. The Jonas Brothers are pretty good role models and there are some good messages in here that don’t feel overly preachy. Just don’t expect anything more than a rip-off of every other previous film like it. While High School Musical made breakout stars, and even appealed to older teens and young adult women, Camp Rock is strictly for fans of the Jonas Brothers. You really have to enjoy them to enjoy this film.
The video is presented in 1080p/AVC at the 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen color ratio, which is enhanced for 16:9 TVs of course. The transfer is good considering it came over straight from TV. There is some noticable graininess, but the colors are vibrant for the most part. No major problems at all.
The audio included is available in either English Uncompressed PCM 5.1 sound, English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround sound, English Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo sound, or French Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround sound. There are subtitles available in English and French as well. The dialogue and music come out loud and clear, and that is all you really need for a film targeted towards youngsters. They will be able to sing and dance long with no major problems.
Blu-Ray Exclusives
“The Camp Rock Set Tour” Featurette –
This runs 7 minutes and it takes you on a tour of the set as you might expect. We get a look at the planning that takes place to construct all of the sets in the film. Joe Jonas appears in this as well. But not really worth it as the only extra for this film on blu-ray.
Found on Standard Edition As Well…
Sing Along With the Movie Option –
This is an option to watch the movie and have the lyrics to every song displayed through out the movie at the bottom of your screen.
Camp Rock Karaoke Option –
This is an option that allows you to choose which of the songs from the movie you want to sing immediately. They include “Who Will I Be?”, “This is Me”, “What it Takes”, “Start the Party”, “Too Cool”, and “Gotta Find You”.
“How To Be a Rock Star!” Featurette –
This runs 28 minutes and it’s basically a tutorial with advice and opinions from the cast on how to sing, dress, dance, behave, practice, and network “like a rock star”. It’s a morals-based series of testimonies and opinions from the stars. Just a fluffy entertaining piece that the target audience will probably love.
“Jonas Brothers: Real Life Rock Stars” Featurette –
This runs 16 minutes and it’s a brief autobiography of the Jonas Brothers told by the Jonas Brothers. You’ll hear the story of how the band formed, how much each practiced to get up to speed before they could start their band, and how grueling the touring can be like 10 cities in three days. Very informative if you don’t know who these guys are.
“Introducing Demi Levato” Featurette –
This runs 6 minutes and a similar autobiography of Demi Levato told by her. Not as interesting as the Jonas Brothers one as you might expect, but she should be the “next big thing”.
“Hasta La Vista: From Rehearsals to Final Jam” Featurette –
This runs 5 minutes and it’s a “behind-the-scenes” look at rehearsals and preparation for the film’s most popular musical number. This is the one with Jordan Francis, who plays Barron, and Roshon Fegan, who plays Sander.
“Too Cool: Setting the Scene” Featurette –
This runs 4 minutes and it’s a similar look at what went into designing the set for the film’s performance of “Too Cool”. There is actually some more interesting stuff in this featurette than most of the previous ones.
Camp Memories –
This is a 6 minute slide show of photos taken during the production of the film.
Music Videos –
There are two music videos for songs from the movie. They are “Start the Party” and “We Rock”.
If you’re a parent of a young girl or a fan of the Jonas Brothers, you will probably run right out and buy this DVD. If you don’t fit into either of those categories, this film still might be worth a rental if you are curious. However, for most everyone else they are best to skip it all together. In addition, if you want this film in widescreen then the Blu-ray edition is only version to get. The special features on the same on both versions, with an extra featurette thrown onto to the Blu-ray version, and the audio and video are only slightly improved. But it basically comes down to full screen vs. widescreen if you absolutely must buy this film.
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Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment presents Camp Rock. Directed by Michael Diamond. Written by Karin Gist and Regina Y. Hicks. Starring Demi Lovato, Joe Jonas, Meaghan Jette Martin, Maria Canals-Barrera, Alyson Stoner, Julie Brown, Daniel Fathers, Anna Maria Perez de Tagle, Jasmine Richards, Jordan Francis, Roshon Fegan, Kevin Jonas, and Nick Jonas. Running time: 98 minutes. Rated G. Released on DVD: August 19, 2008. Available at Amazon.com
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