Following the phenomenal success of High School Musical, the Disney Channel launched Camp Rock in an attempt to start another budding franchise. Demi Lovato stars as Mitchie Torres, an aspiring musician whose dream comes true when she tags along with her mother, who has accepted a position as a caterer at the eponymous summer camp. Mitchie, a nice girl, unaccountably wants to hang with the cool, not-so-nice kids, led by camp diva Tess Tyler (Meaghan Jette Martin), who has neglectful-superstar-mom issues. Joe Jonas, of super-hot Jonas Brothers band fame, costars as a bratty rock star in need of image rehabilitation. Camp Rock, which was a ratings bonanza, boasts an energetic cast, but—unfortunately—it's dragged down by bland music and a predictable storyline. Still, as the Borg, from the Star Trek universe, wisely noted: resistance is futile. Sure to be popular, this is a strong optional purchase. [DVD extras include a 27-minute featurette on “How to Be a Rock Star,” a profile of the Jonas Brothers (16 min.), a pair of music videos, a featurette on new Disney star Demi Lovato, a handful of behind-the-scenes featurettes, and sing-along options for the film's songs. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a so-so family film.] (D. Liebenson)
Camp Rock
Walt Disney, 98 min., TV-G, DVD: $29.99, Blu-ray: $34.99 Volume 23, Issue 6
Camp Rock
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As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
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