Camp Rock (2008)

if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

.Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

I see that several people have bashed this movie with all these reviews, and even though Camp Rock Came out 3 years ago, I'm still gonna critique it and give my honest opinion. I thought this movie was fun to watch, it was definitely more likable and realistic than HSM, but at the same time, I find it very predictable, and meaningless for multiple reasons. For example, it does use the same type of characters such as the shy, new girl, heartthrob dude who's a jerk, mean blonde girl who leads a clique, etc, and you don't even have to say anything out loud to be able to figure out what's gonna happen later in the movie, you just know. As far as the music, I found some great variety and I like how a lot of the actors were given some solo songs but my favorite song would have to be Joe Jonas's Gotta Find You because it's very heartfelt and memorable. With the exception of Too Cool, I enjoyed every song on the soundtrack. The acting wasn't such a problem, seeing as Joe did great at being a jerk, although his character Shane Gray reminded me of Jordan Cahill from Stuck In The Suburbs in the sense that they both want to be able to have creative control over their music, and Demi Lovato was great, especially since this film was her big break. However, I wish the other characters such as Barron(Jordan Francis) and Sander(Roshon Fegan) were given personal story lines and more time to develop, though I do praise their talent. A problem I have with this movie is its message; It is predictable and boring, and it seems that the filmmakers were too focused on the "Entertainment Factor" that they didn't spend enough time on the movie's core message. While the concept of the movie revolves around rock, the soundtrack doesn't exactly stay true to that because there's hip-hop, pop, and R&B, involved, the music is still enjoyable. I will say that the Jonas Brothers in general are not meant to be actors, especially not Nick. If you thought this film sucked, try watching its disastrous sequel, and you'll get an idea of what bad movies are like. All in All, Camp Rock is a pretty fun movie, but as far as teaching an important lesson, it's very cliché and not very substantial. 7.5/10

Disney wanted to cash on the success (on video anyway) of High School Musical, so instead of going with a spin-off, they went with creating another musical mash up for kids. Basically teenage Mitchie Torres (Demi Lovato) is a girl desperate for a great summer at a prestigious rock music camp, but she can only attend if she and her mother Connie (Maria Canals-Barrera) work in the kitchen as cooks. Also visiting the camp for a career revamp and to watch rising stars is Shane Gray (Joe Jonas), teen lead singer of the pop band Connect 3, with fellow members Jason (Kevin Jonas) and Nate (Nick Jonas). He overhears a girl, Mitchie obviously, singing a song with a great voice, and he is desperate to find this girl, and not realising he has been talking to her quite a lot. There is the point where the bitchy girl exposes Mitchie as being int he kitchen and lying about it, but everyone forgives her and she does eventually get to sing and love with Shane for the happy ending. Oh, and the last minute contestant of the Rock Camp is the winner. Also starring Meaghan Jette Martin as Tess Tyler, Alyson Stoner as Caitlyn Geller, Julie Brown as Dee La Duke, Daniel Fathers as Brown Cesario, Anna Maria Perez De Tagle as Ella and Jasmine Richards as Peggy. The songs are very cheesy (only one or two are nearly catchy I will admit), the young performers are too naive and predictable, and that is exactly how the film is as well, so while the kids will be entertained, I wasn't completely. Adequate!

I wasn't sure what Camp Rock would be like, as I heard a lot of bad things about it, and a lot of comparing to High School Musical. As I didn't care that much for the latter, I gave Camp Rock a shot, expecting it to be bad. Instead...it wasn't THAT bad. Yes, it was predictable and bland, but there were some enjoyable things about it.Admittedly the story is very predictable, it is the sort of thing you have seen before and there is nothing special here. The script also has its weak spots and clichés, and some of the characters felt shallow.However, the performances had a lot of spirit and enthusiasm about them, with Demi Lovato sweet and pretty in the title role especially. I thought the soundtrack was groovy and in general quite catchy, not my sort of thing really, but even after 15 minutes I can still remember the end song. The choreography is good, repetitive perhaps in one or two areas but not too bad. Also the ending has a touch of feel good about it.Overall, nothing to rave about or anything special, but not as bad as I thought it would be. 6/10 Bethany Cox

2006 was the mayor turning point for Disney with the new releases of "Hannah Montana" and "High School Musical". While they amused the kids and tweens, they certainly despaired the rest of the world. And why not? They were just made for marketing campaign and for franchise. The High School Musical films (at least those I've seen) were quite mediocre. Hannah Montana the show, despite it's flaws, turned to be quite entertaining, but was unfortunately followed up by a disappointing movie. Logically there's no strange why the hatred for the new Disney Channel products has blossomed and why some of the public attacks them, considering that Disney currently no longer makes hand drawn-flicks (with the exception of "The Princess and the Frog") and instead just produces out teen stars with their own shows, movies, music and etc.Speaking for myself, I don't like either quite like that Disney produces stars in that way, but I shall confess that I've seen a few of the new Disney Channel movies, just of curiosity. When I first heard about "Camp Rock", my thought were immediately that Disney wanted to repeat it's success with a mediocre movie. But I was wrong; "Camp Rock" is one of the better Disney channel movie I've seen.Of course this movie isn't a masterpiece, but it's surprisingly decent, entertaining and even better than the High School Musical flicks and the Hannah Montana Movie."Camp Rock" is starring the Disney teen star Demi Lovato, who is promoted in almost the same way as Selena Gomez and Miley Cyrus. Demi is likable enough and delivers a decent performance here, but she does have a lot of progression to distinguish herself from both Selena and Miley. This doesn't necessarily means that Demi is a bad actress, hopefully if she chooses the right parts, she can become really good. But vocally she is a step in front of her competitors. She doesn't have a distinctive voice, but a beautiful one, who sounds stunning when she hits the right notes. She's also shows energy and dynamic in her "This Is Me" performance at the end of the film.The rest of the cast does a decent job without being memorable. Those who distinguish themselves are Alyson Stoner as the likable Caitlyn Geller and Meaghan Jette Martin as Tess Tyler. Also Joe Jonas is very credible as the selfish and unlikeable (at least the beginning) Shane Gray. His two other brothers are charming, but far from the best actors this world has to offer. Otherwise it's easy to notice that the same Disney stars from the TV shows is used in the movies. Even Anna Maria Perez de Tagle plays a dumb character in flick similar to the character of Ashley as she plays in "Hannah Montana".Otherwise, there isn't so much to say about "Camp Rock". It's a typical teen flick; a insecure girl as the protagonist, new friends to make, falling in love and etc. Oh, one thing I want to mention; If you've asked me who Demi Lovato or Joe Jonas was for a year ago, I wouldn't have a clue. And the ironically about the Disney Channel flicks is that their movies are mediocre, but their songs are very catchy and likable - and "Camp Rock" is no exception. There are many good songs here, which are better than both the latest "Hannah" and "High School" songs.The only bad thing about this film is that is was released a year ago. This is one of Disney Channel's better movies and if it was released today, it would have made up to Disney's other mistakes like the "Hannah Montana Movie", "High School Musical" and even "Hatching Pete" and "Dadnapped". Otherwise, don't expect a masterpiece while you're seeing this film, just expect this to be a harmless and decent teen flick and then you'll be pleased.