Instead, you get a movie that's enjoyable enough, but leaves you feeling like it could have been much, much more.

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters.

There is definitely an excellent idea hidden in the background of the film. Unfortunately, it's difficult to find it.

Lead singer of a tribute band (Marky Mark) becomes lead singer of the real band he idolizes.So, I see comments saying this is another movie Jennifer Aniston ruined. Well, that is half true. She definitely makes it worse and every scene she is in amounts to a steaming pile of doo. Even her voice is grating and it is hard to take her seriously.But the movie would have stunk either way. It has a good idea, sort of, especially since this really happened (to Journey). But it is not funny enough to be a comedy or serious enough to be a drama. It just sort of... is. It would have been significantly better if it had a little more humor in it and could have been passed off as a mockumentary. I mean, yeah, we already have "Spinal Tap", but it wouldn't have to be that silly.

I had a whole morning to sleep on it, but I'm still not sure what to think of this. First off, it was very weird seeing Dominick West play a 'Judas Priest' guitarist, knowing him thus far only as 'McNulty' - I'll get over it. But somehow the credibility of all the characters ánd the story was practically nil, even if it was based on actual events. Well, 'based on', but the story is presented as a wide range of mostly clichéd and silly incidents built around a half-hearted (romantic) storyline - even if the premise is original, and a few scenes are reasonably impressive (such as the one where 'Izzy' does his first live performance and wins over the crowd), but mostly because of the simple facts, not the filmic value of it.In all honesty, a lot of those clichés are to be expected in a film about '80s (hard)rock music, but this portrayal didn't convince me. The comedy side of it isn't witty enough (while it's desperately trying to be), and any dramatic impact is destroyed by the fragmentary approach that wants to get every rock'n'roll cliché in there. And then the look of it (settings, clothing, photography, etc.) was just dull and uninspired, except for maybe the vast set ups of the big gigs.The music wasn't all that either, in my opinion, and I wish they hadn't put in any pop music at all, which just didn't belong there. The acting is just so so, of which Wahlberg's first part of his job (the young fanatic) was the most convincing. Well, I suppose this was one I just had to see (hardrock / Jennifer Aniston / 'based on a true story involving Judas Priest'). And by the way, did anyone else notice the Anvil reference in the end? Or was I seeing things?Only remotely interesting and entertaining; 4 out of 10.

The real story of the departure of long time Judas Priest singer Rob Halford along with his coming out and the hiring of Judas Priest tribute band singer Tim "Ripper" Owens inspired this movie. Mark Wahlberg is Chris Cole, the lead singer in a tribute band to his idols, British metal group Steel Dragon, and after a violent argument with his bandmates during a gig is kicked out only to be invited several days later to audition for Steel Dragon's lead singer job. He lands the job and goes on tour with his new band and girlfriend. The movie starts out well and Mark Wahlberg does a reasonable job of playing an 80's metal front man but the story just isn't there. He sleeps with a few groupies, has a few beers, and sniffs some drugs but it's also contrived to give a cute little ending where he leaves the band after pulling a guy out of a concert audience who happens to be a better singer than him. He then proceeds to cut his hair and go play small shows at coffee houses with his integrity intact. Bleh.

This is a movie that no viewer should take seriously, and simply enjoy for its funny, cliché'd, bubblegum take on the 1980s metal/hair band thing.Mark Wahlberg's acting is a bit wooden, but it works in this film because he's playing a young man who is uncomfortable in his own skin (very much the same kind of performance he delivers in Boogey Nights). Aniston is miscast. She's too polished for the girlfriend/manager role, but she's tolerable. Good supporting performances by Timothy Spall, Dominic West, Dagmara Dominczyk, Jason Flemyng, Tim Olyphant and Matthew Glave. The supporting performances are a strength of the movie, along with the music, which is very well done. I'm not a metal fan, but the movie has a handful of very catchy tunes. The concerts feel real enough. The dialog works and the plot moves along at a decent pace, delivering a number of laughs and a palpable feel for the rise-fall-reborn sequence of the Chris Cole/Izzy character.Recommended for light-hearted viewing.