THE ROCK-AFIRE EXPLOSION MOVIE

"Showbiz Pizza Place" was the Chuck E Cheese of the 80's filled with games, rides,pizza,beer for the parents and an animatronic shows. The shows whether you loved them or hated them,were the reason why you went and the people were either a...

ROCK-AFIRE EXPLOSION PERSON


OR A

 CHUCK E CHEESE PERSON




As much as I like them both as a child and I still do, it has to be "The Rock-afire Explosion". The characters are more memorable, their songs rock, the stages are great and they were famous before Chuck E Cheese became famous and actually had the band replace. Since it's my Birthday I'm going to review a Documentary film called...



The film is a documentary on the history of the "Rock-afire Explosion". The film goes from the history of "Showbiz Pizza Place" to the fan base that make these characters live on. You'll see interviews of fans of the show such as Chris Thrash and the shows creator the great Aaron Fechter.



For those who don't know the band,don't worry I'll tell you about them. The show was divided into three stages. On the right stage you got a Bear named Billy Bob who's the shows host and he's just a real sweetheart. His friend is a drunken tech nerd Bird named Looney Bird who'd pop his head in and out of the gas can. On the left side you had Rolfe the wolf who thinks he's all that and has a puppet named Earl who'd insult him and probably has a mind of his own. On the center stage, you'd have the band. The one in the middle (Who's my favorite character) is Fatz the ape who'd play the piano,co hosts the show and is a parody of Fats Domino. Then you have Beach Bear who'd play his guitar while swinging back and fourth on his Surf Board and sing rock tunes. Then there's Mitzi the Mouse who's a teenage girl cheerleader and would sing all the girl songs. Finally you have Dook the Dog on drum who has a great voice but is very dumb and wears a Spacesuit so he can some day go to outter space. You'd also have props that move such as a singing Moon and Sun,a Spider jumping up and down and more. Now that you know about them, here's my review on the film.



The documentary gives a very nostalgic feel for the people who grew up and went to "Showbiz Pizza Place" to see the band. We see showbiz through old Commercials and just by watching them (To the people who've been there) you get that Nostalgia feel and for those who didn't grow up when Showbiz Pizza Place wasn't around you still feel like a kid watching it and makes you wish that you were there. I also love the clips and show tapes of the band because the film really makes them look like great characters and you know what they are great characters.





The interviews are what make this film very good. Hearing and watching the interviews of Aaron  Fechter and Chris Thrash are very interesting and enjoyable. With Aaron we hear about his history of how he developed the band,talks about the rise and fall of the band,his life on creating them and we even get a tour of a warehouse full some old and rare items from the years he's created the band. I also love his story about when Michael Jackson came to look at them. Interviews of Chris Thrash and the other fans of the show bring a very nostalgic feel to when you saw them as a kid,how much the fan base has grown,talking about collecting and their love for the band,telling they're stories as kids and all of these interviews make feel proud to be a fan of the band.



The part that makes me cry in the film is when the band was being replaced by the Chuck E Cheese band. The interviews from Aaron and the fans sound very heartbreaking, the story of their loss for the band is sad and as we watch all this we see an old video of people removing the characters and replacing them with the Chuck E Cheese characters. I will admit I do like Chuck E Cheese but The Rock-afire Explosion is way better then them and seeing the best animatronic band being replaced by a cheap copy,it's really sad to watch and hear.



Finally there's the current fan base of the show. The Documentary talks about how "YouTube" is introducing people to the band and shows what fans that have the show are doing with them.I just enjoy watching the "YouTube" footage of the band being over dubbed by modern music because it shows how pulled in the new fans are. I even love the ending when we see the band performing "Hello Sunshine" by the Super Furry Animals.

The documentary is really outstanding. It brings a lot of nostalgia, it gives new comers a fresh new look at these characters and it really shows the amount of work, effort and history behind the characters. One of the best documentaries I've ever seen.

RATING 5/5

THIS REVIEW AND FUTURE REVIEWS ON THE SHOWS OF "THE ROCK-AFIRE EXPLOSION" IS DEDICATED TO...

AARON FECHTER

CHRIS THRASH

THE PEOPLE WHO WORKED, BUILT AND VOICED THE CHARACTERS

AND ALL THE FANS OF THE SHOW