The Disney Channel movie machine rolls on with this rockin’ trip to camp. Well, it tries to be another High School Musical, but it’s more soap opera than musical. Fans of the channel will enjoy attending this camp though.
Mitchie Torres (Demi Lovato) has her heart set on attending the musical themed Camp Rock. Her family is short of funds and she’s not going to get to attend. However, she gets a surprise when her caterer mother Connie (Maria Canals Barrera) secures the gig as camp cook and Mitchie gets to go to camp after all.
Shane Gray (Joe Jonas) is the tabloid bad boy of the group Connect 3, along with Nate (Nick Jonas) and Jason (Kevin Jonas). He’s going to have to do some image softening so he’s also being sent to Camp Rock - since his uncle, Brown Cessario (Daniel Fathers), is the camp director.
Shane is to pick a camper to sing a duet with in an attempt to soften his image. Mitchie is elated to attend the camp, but when she meets Tess Tyler (Meaghan Jette Martin), whose mother is a famous pop star, she embellishes her back-story and paints her mother as being a high powered executive and not the camp chef. Shane happens to hear Mitchie singing from afar and dubs her “the voice.”
Since he didn’t actually get a look at her face, he spends the film trying to match the voice with the girl – and there’s plenty of girls that want to be the match. Caitlyn (Alyson Stoner) tells Mitchie that her friendship with Tess will come to no good since the only person that Tess cares about is Tess. This turns out to be true as Tess tries to sabotage Mitchie at every turn.
Camp Rock obviously has some connection to Disney Channel kids since 8.9 million viewers tuned in for the premiere - placing it second only to High School Musical 2. However, I also found it second in storyline as the plot is even more worn than the Romeo and Juliet plotline of HSM.
Camp Rock tries to add in a bit of Cinderella/Little Mermaid as Joe is trying to find a mysterious voice and the gal that goes with it, but when it comes to the big finale that’s not the gal that he picks to record with him.
I guess he just wanted “the voice” for romance (albeit without even a kiss) instead of the album or the writers were just trying to throw us a curve ball by having not who we think would “win” the contest. Don’t worry our two young romantics find each other.
High School Musical also had more memorable songs and made better use of them, not to mention that some of the performances feature some pretty poor lip-synching. Sure there are some rocking musical numbers, but they seem a bit poorly placed and too far apart, making them feel uneven, as the story unfurls.
The cast of High School Musical was much more appealing and memorable than any of the cast of Camp Rock. The main draw for the core audience is going to be the Jonas Brothers, but only Joe gets the majority of the spotlight and the other siblings are more relegated to cameos (and the goofball stuff about the birdhouse doesn’t help things either).
Demi Lovato is cute and is perhaps poised to be the next big thing on the channel as a Camp Rock 2 is already in the works. This home video version extends the ending by having another song with the gals after camp.
Camp Rock is presented in a 1080p high definition transfer (1.78:1). Special features include sing along mode (lyrics onscreen) and karaoke mode (which lets you sing the lead part by turning off the original vocals). Next are two music videos – “Start the Party” (1 minute) and “We Rock” (2 minutes).
Exclusive to the Blu-ray is a 6-minute “Camp Rock Set Tour” featuring Joe Jonas (cue screaming girls) and is the only special feature in high definition (even though the back of the case says they all are).
“How to be a Rock Star” is a 27 minute tutorial on how you too can rock out. “Jonas Brothers: Real Life Rock Stars” is a 15 minute interview with Henry Kissinger… okay, it’s really the Jonas Brothers. “Introducing Dami Lovato” is a 5 minute history of the young star.
“Camp Rock Memory Book” is a 5 minute collection of photos and video from the shoot. “From Rehearsal to Final Jam: Hasta La Vista” is a 5 minute look at the finale. “Setting the Stage for Too Cool” is a 3 minute look at that musical number. Finally, there are previews for other Disney products.
Camp Rock will satisfy the age bracket that the film has been made for, but I thought the show was a bit worn. However, I’m well out of the age group that the film was made for but I still think that High School Musical does a better job at charming them than this movie does.
Camp Rock: Extended Rock Star Edition is now available at Amazon . Visit the DVD database for more information.
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