vchimpanzee
"Rising Stars" is the most popular show on the Source One network, which on one had ever heard of until Mo made the show a hit. Despite a scandal last season, Mo hopes to make this a great season.The movie starts with the semifinals. Two groups are competing--filmmakers and performers. The performers can be individuals, singing groups or bands. The three finalists in each category spend time on a college campus, where each filmmaker is paired with a musical act. Cameras and microphones follow the kids everywhere, so nearly everything they do is recorded for possible broadcast. The musicians must write and perform a song according to guidelines given to them, and the filmmakers must each produce a music video with the musicians.Natalie, who has short hair but is sort of attractive, is usually depressed, partly because of her beautiful but perfectionist mother and her mostly absent father. She is paired with Chance's band, who remind me of Maroon 5. Chance lives in a trailer but doesn't want anyone to know, but his bandmate Pete does. There is a potential romance.Garrett is a bully who thinks he is better than anyone else and knows everything. He is paired with rapper/R&B duo JR and Eigsh (pronounced Ash). JR's father constantly reminds him he spend over $40,000 on lessons (and he knows the exact amount).And awkward computer nerd Kevin is matched with perky and beautiful pop singer and dancer Brenna, who is somewhat lacking in the brains department and shallow but sweet.There is potential for conflict here, but apparently not enough for Mo. While Mo is charming enough on camera, he mistreats everyone, especially his pretty assistant who has glasses (and is prettier without them) and a brain. Mo doesn't care about her opinions; as with everyone else, he just cares that she does for him what he needs done. But you have to like her and feel sorry for her.Mo secretly plans added drama that will make the show more interesting. But it just might backfire on him. There are definitely some lessons to be learned here.Fisher Stevens ends up being quite a nasty villain. After his fine performance in "Early Edition" years ago, I thought he was flat at first, but he later does quite a good job. Of the kids, Lauren Ashley Carter does the best job as the somewhat depressed Natalie, who gradually shows a more pleasant side. My favorite moment was one where she showed why she's not a performer. I thought all the younger actors did a good job, in particular Graham Patrick Martin as the bully Garrett, who also turns out better than we first thought.Barry Corbin is the real standout as a janitor who gives advice to the kids. I also thought the actress playing Mo's poor assistant did a good job but I have no idea who she is from looking at the credits.The actor playing JR's father also does a good job, but I don't remember the man's name.I didn't care for the music, but I'm not in the target audience here. The kids are all talented. Young people will probably like it. The music videos are well done, and "Refund Desk" is a lot of fun.JR actually does music I sort of like in the chapel, with a solo piano, but it's not part of the competition. Someone else plays a nice blues guitar, but again, it's not quite what I enjoy.It's a worthwhile movie with good lessons.
bkoganbing
Rising Stars is a decent enough family film with some young people auditioning to appear on a reality TV show concerning the making of music videos. Fisher Stevens is the producer of the show and he selects three teams of artists and film makers. Stevens is looking for ratings and he deliberately instigates rivalry and strife between the teams. One of the kids who is a film maker is Graham Patrick Martin who is best known for being the gay kid on Major Crimes is full of himself and he's doing enough on his own. But when possessions are destroyed eventually the kids realize how they're being exploited. They form a united front and triumph.Stevens is a Snidely Whiplash like villain and kind of fun to watch. Barry Corbin plays a janitor who proves to be a mentor and adviser to young Kyle Riabko who comes from a white trash background. Rising Stars is a good family oriented film with some nice music played a talented cast.
Guitar-8
This movie caught me by surprise when I saw it on Encore Family. Three film makers along with three musical acts, team up to make a music video. However, the producer tries to sabotage the finalists by destroying their prized possessions (notebook, computer & guitar). The young stars figure out what happened & they all decided to forfeit the contest & make a musici video of their own, they can be proud of.This movie features Nickelodeon star Leon Thomas III (Vistorious), who showcasd his lead singing talents. He got his start guesting on three different Nick series (Just Jordan, ICarly & Naked Brothers Band).But Kyle Riabko stands out playing the lead singer/guitarist, Chance McGraw. He has a good voice & rocks on the guitar. With a name like Chqnce, he deserves to have the Community Chest LOL; Monopoly joke).
