The Perfect Age of Rock N Roll – Review

Reviews, Theatrical Reviews

The Far From Perfect Movie About Rock N Roll

The title The Perfect Age Of Rock N Roll refers to The 27 Club of musicians who died while at the height of their prime, like Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, Kurt Cobain, and the more recently Amy Winehouse. The irony is that the film’s rockstar isn’t 27, isn’t dying, and the film is anything but perfect.

In present day, has been rocker Spyder (Kevin Zegers) lives in a dilapidated house and has allowed an exclusive interview about his fall from fame with reporter Clifton Hangar (Lukas Haas). His story flashes back to 1991 when he returns home to ask his brother Eric (Jason Ritter) to write more songs for a third album for his band The Lost Soulz. Eric refuses at first, but finally gives in on one condition: that August (Peter Fonda) drive the whole band and their manager Rose (Taryn Manning) across the country to LA in his RV.

As the band members road trip down Route 66 we learn that Eric was once a part of Spyder’s band. The songs that Eric wrote for the band, however, were stolen by Spyder and were recorded for The Lost Soulz first album aka “the best selling debut album of all time.”

We also learn that Rose may or may not be manipulating the entire band to further her own career due to a single scene of her on the phone with a record producer and a conversation that doesn’t come up once more in the entire film. Rose also begins a sort of love triangle with Eric and Spyder. Only the relationship with Eric is very sweet one moment and incredibly uncaring the next, and her relationship with Spyder is nearly nonexistent until the very end of the film.

It’s surprising that The Lost Soulz first album was “the best selling debut album of all time” being that none of their songs are very good. We see a music video from one of their best selling singles and it consists of Spyder screaming into the camera wearing his trademark open shirt, low slung leather pants, and massive amounts of eyeliner. At one point during the road trip after a clichéd fist fight in the rain, Eric and Spyder happen upon a blues club where Ruby Dee is the bartender and they play blues music with some of the real-life industry greats. Just like the rest of the film, the two don’t contribute much.

The Perfect Age of Rock N Roll is full of eye-rolling clichés that seem to be stolen from every road trip movie and every rock and roll movie ever made, only writer/director Scott Rosenbaum is no Cameron Crowe and he doesn’t even have the talented cast to back him up. David Zegers is a complete mess with his Steven Tyler wardrobe and an unexplained scar across his eye. Jason Ritter is supposed to be the protagonist but he doesn’t bring any good to the table whatsoever, and Taryn Manning looks like she’s stumbling her way through the entire ordeal. Her best scene is with Peter Fonda as they talk about classic rock while sitting shotgun in the RV.

Filmed in 2009, The Perfect Age of Rock N Roll is probably being released at the worst time possible for a rock and roll movie having the title that it does, with the too soon death of Amy Winehouse. Spyder’s indulgent cocaine addiction and complete disregard for anybody but himself is not viewed as cool, but as repulsive. The classic rock songs played during the road trip are infinitely better than anything that the fictional band plays. The relationships that are supposed to be tested during this epic road trip are sorely underdeveloped and therefore nobody cares about any of the characters. Like the too late article that will be written by Clifton Hangar (cliff-hanger, get it?) long after The Lost Soulz were relevant, The Perfect Age of Rock N Roll will soon be forgotten.


Director: Scott Rosenbaum
Notable Cast: David Zegers, Taryn Manning, Jason Ritter, Peter Fonda
Writer(s): Scott Rosenbaum

Jenny is proud to be the First Lady of Inside Pulse Movies. She gives female and mommy perspective, and has two kids who help with rating family movies. (If they don't like 'em, what's the point?) She prefers horror movies to chick flicks, and she can easily hang with the guys as long as there are several frou-frou girlie drinks to be had.