Rock of Ages

Saw a free preview of this the other night. I was surprised by the musical talents of all the main players. Cruise can carry a tune, who knew. Cheesy, but yes, the 80's were. Spectacular and the mixes of the songs, inspired...like an R-rated version of Glee on steroids with a heavy dose of metal and a baboon. Believe it or not, I get that, the baboon, I mean. Classically campy and will be a favorite at outdoor cinemas everywhere...insert dialogue here. The crowd was mixed and a lot of them didn't get the fact that it was a musical and people will spontaneously break into a song. They laughed until they figured out that the first part of the song was the words that they couldn't hear in so many other instances. The worst was a dance number in a church, but the songs were great and handled correctly. It was actually very well done. Cruise did his best rendition of Axl Rose, less skinny, and his voice isn't as high, but it's up there and does have an edge to it. He really was well cast. I think a lot of people missed his performance in Magnolia. Weird as that film is and disgusting as his character is, he nailed it and he pretty much does it here, too. Survey sez...grab a can of hairspray and Ratt your bangs up high. You'll be glad you did. 3.5 stars