ThiefHott
Too much of everything
BootDigest
Such a frustrating disappointment
Breakinger
A Brilliant Conflict
Robert Joyner
The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one
Uriah43
"Miss Evelyn Togar" (Mary Woronov) has just been hired as the new principal of Vince Lombardi High School and she is determined to install discipline in it. Standing in her way is a rebellious senior by the name of "Riff Randell" (P.J. Soles) and her best-friend "Kate Rambeau" (Dey Young). Yet while Riff is outgoing and doesn't care about her studies Kate is the total opposite as she is a very good student but rather and introverted. Along with that Kate has a crush on the captain of the football team "Tom Roberts" (Vincent Van Patten) who in turn has a crush on Riff. Unfortunately for Tom, Riff has a crush on the lead singer of the Ramones who just happen to be coming to town. But once again Miss Togar is standing in the way of Riff's happiness. Now rather than reveal any more of this film and risk spoiling it for those who haven't seen it I will just say that watching this movie was like watching a train wreck in slow motion—I had to keep watching in spite of the fact that the humor was hit-or-miss, the music wasn't exactly my style and the end was totally predictable. As a matter of fact about the only thing good about this movie was the presence of P.J. Soles who was definitely cute but not exactly capable of carrying the entire film by herself. Now don't get me wrong—this isn't a bad movie by any means and like I said before it kept my attention throughout. But there were some parts that could have used improvement and as a result I rate this film as only average.
Michael_Elliott
Rock 'n' Roll High School (1979) ** 1/2 (out of 4)Entertaining, if extremely brain dead film set in a high school where a new principle has started and she refuses to let the kids dance, sing or have fun. When The Ramones come to town, their #1 fan Riff Randell (P.J. Soles) will do whatever it takes to get tickets and to make sure the school is ready to rock. If one is looking for plot then it's best to skip this film because it's rather shocking to see how little of it there is. Basically we have a mean principle wanting to hold the kids down and all the kids want to do is listen to rock music, have sex and make sure everything is fun. I must admit that there's a certain charm this movie has and I'm really not sure what it was. The majority of the acting is bad, the story, well, there isn't one and I'm not a major fan of The Ramones. Yet, for some reason the film really put its hooks in me and I was swept off my feet and thrown into the fun side of the film. I think a lot of credit has to go to P.J. Soles who was simply delightful as the #1 fan. Yes, you could argue that the "performance" wasn't "great" but I think it was good enough to really sell the spirit of the film and its message. I also thought Clint Howard was a lot of fun and especially during a sequence where he's teaching two losers how to make out. The music of The Ramones and others are put to good use and there's no question that you'll be tapping your feet during the musical numbers. ROCK 'N' ROLL HIGH SCHOOL isn't brain surgery and it's not a classic but there's an innocent charm that makes it worth viewing.
jimmygeekrock
How can you go wrong with the amazing Ramones? What a crime that two of them are already dead. It reminds me of the Dennis Leary joke about great musicians dying in kitchen fires while useless ones live forever. I'm paraphrasing here, but you get the idea.ROCK AND ROLL HIGH SCHOOL tells the story of a group of disenfranchised kids fighting against their oppressive high school's administration. It's extremely silly stuff, but there's an optimism about it that's refreshing (even if they do resort to blowing up the building). Who knew that this would actually become a concern for students around the world? ROCK AND ROLL HIGH SCHOOL is a time capsule of an era when people still believed that music mattered and that it could make a difference to the larger society. It's full of kids who know authority doesn't have the correct answers. Rather, rock and roll is the only thing they can trust.But most important, this is pure exploitation.Take none of it seriously. Just go in and have a good time. If this wasn't what high school life was like in the seventies, then it should have been.
TexasRedge
I liked this movie I remember there was one very well done scene in this movie where Riff Randell (played by P.J. Soles) is lying in her bed smoking pot and then she begins to visualize that the Ramones are in the room with her sing the song "I Want You Around" ...very very cool stuff.It was fun, energetic, quirky and cool. Yes I'll admit that the ending is way-way over the top and far fetched ...but it doesn't matter because it is fun this is a very fun movie. It's Sex, Pot and Rock n Rocll foreverI read that Cheap Trick was the band who was originally to star in this ..But I do not know if this is true or not