“Rock School” Directed by Don Argott
Newmarket Films
Just about any film can be defined by one small moment, and the
achingly funny and genuine documentary “Rock School” is
a perfect example. The movie’s microcosmic event comes during
a one-on-one chat with Paul Green, the head of the eponymous Paul
Green School of Rock Music. Green, a failed musician himself,
relates that he wants to succeed as a teacher and help his students
grow. But at the same time, he worries that his students will one
day surpass him musically, which the guitarist within him is not
too keen on. Yet while this admission is telling, it is only one
small part of what occurs on screen during the film’s 90
minutes. Filmed over an entire season of classes at Green’s
rock school, director Don Argott’s film follows not only the
teacher himself but also the various students who look up to him.
Memorable among the pupils are 16-year-old Madi, the practicing
Quaker who constantly gets into cursing matches with the abrasive
Green over her musical tastes, twin 9-year-olds Asa and Tucker, who
want to be rock stars so they can have fun on tour, and C.J., the
12-year-old reincarnation of Jimi Hendrix. The film’s most
memorable personality, though, aside from Green himself, comes in
16-year-old Will. A somber, inward teenager, Will has a litany of
personal issues that he attempts to allay by attending
Green’s school. While he is, even in his teacher’s
eyes, “a piss-poor musician,” Will physically manifests
just what sort of effect an involved teacher’s dominant
personality can have on the life of a student who feels like no one
is there for him. This becomes apparent long before Will’s
shocking yet disturbingly genuine admission that without the rock
school he’d probably have killed himself long ago. Green,
however, is the true star of “Rock School.” Coming off
like a mixture of Jack Black in 2003’s “School of
Rock” (a difficult comparison to avoid, similar titles aside)
and an exuberantly foul-mouthed teenager, Green initially seems
like the last person parents would want instructing their children.
Yet in spite or maybe because of all his shouting and cursing,
Green gets through to his students like few teachers could ever
dream of doing. Subsequently, the rock school’s trip to a
Frank Zappa festival in Germany perfectly showcases Green’s
vision and the results of his unorthodox teaching. Green’s
consistently aggressive prodding of his students and his demands
for pitch-perfect musical technique pay off when the kids draw
standing ovations and praise from jaded Zappa fans and even former
members of Zappa’s band at the festival. The students achieve
this feat by tearing into covers of Zappa’s songs, some of
which are mind-bogglingly difficult to play for seasoned
professionals, much less adolescents, yet Green and his belief in
the students carries them to even these lofty heights.
Additionally, Argott’s decision to film “Rock
School” with a small digital camcorder lends itself
extraordinarily well to the subject he tackles. The imperfect
footage lends the film a degree of verisimilitude lacking from many
documentaries. “Rock School” may not have the external
gloss of a Michael Moore documentary, but instead proudly wears the
badge of cinema verite: Its low-budget, bare-bones technique
delivers a thoroughly honest, unbiased portrayal of a man so
seemingly childish and immature that he can’t help but
succeed as a teacher. -Mark Humphrey