In a post-apocalyptic future, (or if you watch the Candian version, "Another time...Another place) Mok, a legendary megolaniacal rock superstar who appears to have fallen somewhat, but not totally out of flavor, kidnaps Angel, a new female rocker, to sing for him to open a portal into a darker dimension. It's up to Angel's band mates to save her from Mok's evil clutches in this Canadian produced animated sci-fi musical. The story and plotting seem a bit on the archaic side, but the music is superb (escpecially from Lou Reed and Debbie Harry) and the animation is pretty good. That's enough to make me recommend this film, but I still believe that the earlier "Heavy Metal" is a better overall experience.

My Grade: B-

DVD Extras: Disc 1) 77 minute version; Commentary with Directory Clive Smith; 24 and a half minute Making of; Character sketch Gallery; Restoration Comparisons Disk 2) 81 minute CBC version; "The Devil and Daniel Mouse" short; a Making of said short; "Drats" work print; Rock and Rule Title Workprint; more sketch galleries; Theatrical Trailer; and Trailer for "Electric Dragon 80000V"

DVD-Rom content: the original screenplay in .PDF format

I have always loved animation, and would watch anything animated regardless of how good or bad it is. I did like Rock & Rule. It is not one of my favourite animated movies like Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, The Secret of NIMH, Sleeping Beauty, Watership Down, Snow White, Prince of Egypt, Bambi, Pinocchio and The Iron Giant. But it is nowhere near one of the worst like Spiders Web: A Pig's Tale, Titanic: The Animated Movie, Legend of the Titanic, In Search of the Titanic, Space Thunder Kids, Secret of NIMH 2, Doogal, Ratatoing and Pokemon: The First Movie. Rock & Rule is problematic for me, with the exception of Mok the characters are not really all that interesting, Omar especially is very bland, and the story despite having a good premise is rather predictable and doesn't have much to it, for example we are aware of Mok's plan but we don't know why. The dialogue is a mixed bag, there are times where it is funny and with inspired quips but there are other points where it comes across as stilted. Conversely, the animation is great, the character designs are bizarre but quite unique and the backgrounds and colours are very atmospheric. The voice acting is good, and Mok is an interesting villain, the best character of the movie by default. I did enjoy the thrilling atmosphere conveyed during the songs. But the best part of Rock & Rule is easily the soundtrack, which is amazing. It has such a groove and takes you back to one of the most nostalgic eras. In conclusion, had room for improvement but a very interesting animated film. 7/10 Bethany Cox

After 25 years of reading about this Canadian animated movie from Nelvana in the now-defunct magazine ComicScene, I finally checked out Rock & Rule from the library a few weeks ago. It was the single disc version so there was no longer alternate CBC version nor the previous Nelvana TV short "The Devil and Daniel Mouse" (which I remember enjoying one late Saturday morning in the late '70s) that I read was on a second disc. The animation was certainly awesome enough for the period with the futuristic sets and character designs. The songs by Blondie, Lou Reed, Iggy Pop, Cheap Trick, and Earth, Wind, & Fire were enjoyable if not completely memorable (though if I could listen to these tunes more than once, they'd probably get stuck in my head). I was intrigued by some of the dialogue in some scenes like the "Evil spelled backwards is Live" line. The plot seemed entertaining enough as it was but for some reason I wasn't as overly impressed with it as I thought I was. Maybe it was because it had some material I was overly familiar with like the girl being some power force that I recognized from The Fifth Element which I remember not being too impressed with (though I realize that that movie came out about 13 years after Rock & Rule). Still, for animation fans and those of the artists I just mentioned, Rock & Rule is certainly worth checking out.