Rock & Rule

Last updated
Rock & Rule
Rockruleposter.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Clive A. Smith
Screenplay by
Story by
Produced by
Starring
Cinematography Lenora Hume
Edited byG. Scott LaBarge
Music byPatricia Cullen
Production
companies
Distributed by MGM/UA Entertainment Company
Release dates
Running time
77 minutes
CountryCanada
Languages
  • English
  • French
Budget$8 million
Box office$30,379 (US) [1]

Rock & Rule (known as Ring of Power outside North America) is a 1983 Canadian adult animated [2] musical science fantasy film featuring the voices of Don Francks, Greg Salata, and Susan Roman. [3] It was produced by Michael Hirsh and Patrick Loubert and directed by Clive A. Smith from a screenplay by John Halfpenny and Peter Sauder.

Contents

Centering upon rock and roll music, Rock & Rule includes songs by Cheap Trick, Debbie Harry, Lou Reed, Iggy Pop, and Earth, Wind & Fire. [4] It takes place in a post-apocalyptic United States populated by mutant humanoid animals. The film was a commercial failure, grossing $30,379 on an $8 million budget, but has developed a cult following. [5]

Plot

Mok Swagger, a legendary rock musician, is on the search for a very special voice whose frequencies can unleash a powerful demon from another dimension, his dwindling popularity driving him to destroy the world in vengeance and immortalize himself in the process. After travelling around the world looking for the right voice, he returns to his hometown of Ohmtown, a remote, storm-ravaged village famous for its unique power plant. Meanwhile, at a nightclub, Omar, Angel, Dizzy and Stretch perform in a small rock band. As Angel performs her romantic ballad to a mostly empty audience, Mok hears her sing; he realizes that Angel has the voice he needs when a ring he is wearing reacts to her voice. Mok invites Angel and the band to his mansion outside of town, where the band is formally introduced to him and his assistants, the "Rollerskating Schlepper Brothers" Toad, Sleazy and Zip. Mok incapacitates Omar and Stretch with hypnotic "Edison Balls" as he takes Angel on a stroll through his garden and tries to convince her to join him. Although Angel is unaware of Mok's true intentions, she refuses to abandon her band. Unwilling to admit defeat, Mok kidnaps her and takes his blimp to Nuke York, where his summoning, disguised as a concert, will be performed.

Following their ejection from Mok's mansion, the band find out what happened to Angel, and they follow the blimp in a stolen police car. Before they reach Nuke York, they are arrested by a border guard. Meanwhile, Angel attempts to escape with the unwitting help of Cinderella, the sister of the Schleppers. While sneaking through the ventilation system, Angel overhears Mok confirming his plans with his computer. At this time, the computer informs Mok that the only way to stop the demon is with "One voice, one heart, one song", but when Mok asks who can do this, the computer replies that there is "no one". Angel and Cindy escape the building and head to the zero-gravity dance club "Club 666", unaware that the Schleppers are following them. Dizzy's aunt bails out Omar and his friends, and tells them of the club. Angel and Cindy are intercepted and taken back to Mok's apartment, and the band tries to follow. Omar eventually bumps into Mok, who uses an impersonator to fool Omar into thinking that Angel has fallen for Mok. To manipulate Angel, Mok captures the band and tortures them within a giant Edison Ball to force her to agree with his demands. He also brainwashes them to ensure that they stay out of the way. The Nuke York concert turns out to be a disaster due to a power failure. Because the invocation requires a titanic amount of electricity, Mok relocates the summoning to Ohmtown, whose power plant has enough energy. Meanwhile, one of the Schlepper brothers, Zip, expresses childlike doubts about whether their actions are good or evil, and Mok rudely dismisses both his concerns and his feelings. During the concert, a power surge causes overloads all over the city. The shock also brings Omar and his friends out of their hypnosis.

Dizzy finds a poster advertising Mok and Angel's concert, and Stretch sticks with him to save her. After confessing that Omar saw Mok and Angel together, Dizzy tries to remind him it's all mind games. Omar, still believing Mok's earlier deception, refuses to help Dizzy and Stretch stop the concert. They go without him in a stolen police car, but crash at the concert too late, as Mok forces Angel to sing and open a portal to the demon's dimension. A massive demonic entity emerges from the portal and begins wreaking havoc on all those present, wrecking part of the ceiling and devouring some of the bystanders in the audience. But Omar has a change of heart and arrives to free Angel from her electronic shackles before the demon can turn on her. When the demon attacks Omar, Zip sacrifices himself to save Omar's life. Angel tries singing to banish the demon, but her lone voice only pushes him back. But Omar joins in harmony with Angel, and thus the creature is weakened, injured and driven back into its own dimension. Mok is thrown into the portal by Toad, who is avenging Zip's death at the demon's hands. As his attempts to climb out prove futile, he realizes that "no one" did not mean that the demon could not be stopped; it meant instead that "no one voice" could, acting alone; two voices and two hearts singing as one were needed for the counter-spell. Mok then plunges into the portal's depths as it seals itself shut. The audience believes the confrontation to have been part of the concert's theatrics, and the band continues their song in triumph as Mylar, the Ohmtown nightclub manager, announces the band as the new super rock band sensation.

Cast

Production

Rock & Rule was Nelvana's first animated feature film and it was the first Canadian animated feature to be produced in English ( Le Village enchanté , a 1955 production from Quebec, was the country's first, overall [6] ). The movie began production in 1978 as a children's film entitled Drats!. Nelvana used $8 million to finance and produce the film." [7] The premise remained the same, centering on a post-apocalyptic rock band composed of fuzzy mutant creatures who evolved from rats, [8] in a world where the human race was wiped out and only the street animals cats, dogs and rats survived. [9] [10] However, instead of wiring her to the soundboard, Mok transformed Angel into a guitar, and literally played her to summon the beast. [11] The crew felt that it would be easier to animate cartoony characters [12] but, as the film evolved, they gradually became more humanistic, [13] and Hollywood acquaintances encouraged them to skew the tone towards an older audience. [14]

The film was produced without a well defined script; [15] [16] so the crew would develop and work on sequences, leaving holes for more layers of the story to be added later. [17] [18]

The cost of production, $8 million in studio resources, nearly put Nelvana out of business. Over 300 Nelvana animators worked on the film. [19] The film went $3 million over budget. [20]

The animation was of unusually high quality for the era, and the special effects were mostly photographic techniques, as computer graphics were in their infancy. Computers were used to generate only a few images in the film. To add depth a computer controlled multiplane camera system was developed. [21] One effect was called "controlled streak photography", where glowing effects are made by combining backlit animation with a computer-controlled camera. [22]

Release

Prior to its completion, Rock & Rule was picked up by Hollywood film studio MGM/UA in April 1983. However, they did not care about the animated feature and gave it only an extremely small limited release in theatres on April 15, 1983. [23] Due to some scenes involving adult themes such as sexuality and profanity, the film was uniquely marketed. [24]

Alternative versions

American

The American distributor, MGM/UA Entertainment Company, disliked Greg Salata, who voiced Omar, and insisted that he would be re-dubbed by an actor with name recognition, along with several edits being made to the film. Paul Le Mat was cast and Omar's obscenities were written out. The prologue was also altered, giving a reason why the characters are part animal. Released through United Artists in April 1983, the revised film was unable to find an audience at the box office. It was this chopped version that quickly found its way to VHS and LaserDisc. [4]

Canadian

The film was initially broadcast on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation in 1985 [25] (uncut and including parental warnings). In 1988, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation began airing the original cut, which featured extra footage, a different, clearer audio mix, the original voice of Omar, original shots that had been replaced by alternate footage, and the shot of Zip regaining consciousness at the conclusion. [26]

Home media

Original home video release copies of Rock & Rule are extremely difficult to find. MGM/UA Home Video released the film on VHS and Betamax in 1984 and on LaserDisc in 1986. [27] Both of these editions soon went out of print. Bootleg copies of the film ended up being sold at comic book conventions, but these copies erroneously listed the film as having been done by Ralph Bakshi. [28] Soon after its demise in the home entertainment market, copies of the film could be acquired only by writing to Nelvana, who charged a fee of $80 to create and send a video copy of the film. [29]

On June 7, 2005, Unearthed Films released the film for the first time on DVD. The first disc includes the theatrical cut and the second disc includes the original cut of the film (though the original print was destroyed in a fire; this was taken from a VHS source)[ citation needed ] and The Devil and Daniel Mouse , the TV special that was the inspiration for Rock & Rule. Other features were the alternate 'Ring of Power' introduction sequence and a slightly different rough-cut version of the ending. Also included is the trailer for Electric Dragon 80.000 V , a 2001 Japanese film written and directed by Sogo Ishii . On September 28, 2010, a Blu-ray Disc was released by Unearthed Films and has two versions of the film in one disc. [4] Both Unearthed Films releases have since gone out-of-print.

Nelvana uploaded the film to its YouTube channel, Retro Rerun, on November 30, 2019 (which was presented in the American VHS and LaserDisc formats). [30] The upload has since been made private on the website as of April 2022 (which was available on Amazon Prime Video after Amazon's acquisition of MGM Holdings on March 17, 2022, renamed currently known as Amazon MGM Studios).

Merchandise

Because of MGM's lack of interest in the film, very little promotion was given. The film was mentioned in an episode of Night Flight , when Lou Reed was interviewed and incorrectly credited as the speaking voice of Mok. Marvel Comics published a comic book adaptation with authentic pictures from the film and its production in Marvel Super Special #25. [31] [32] According to letterer and assistant editor Michael Higgins, the comic sold well despite the film itself having had only a very limited release. [33]

Reception

The film received mostly positive reviews. Spin Magazine called Rock and Rule "the greatest oddball scifi musical ever committed to animation cels". [34] Critic Janet Maslin of The New York Times commented that "The animation ... has an unfortunate way of endowing the male characters with doggy-looking muzzles. In any case, the mood is dopey and loud." [35] American Film magazine described it as a "nominee for the Instant Midnight Movie Award." [36] Graham Young of the Birmingham Mail said "The antithesis of Disney, and flawed but ahead of its time, Rock & Rule will surprise and delight anyone whose combined interests include graphic novels, animated films and rock music." [37] Mike McPadden of Vice wrote that "it's enjoyable on its own merits and potently nostalgic." [38] Keith Breese of Contact Music described Rock & Rule as "a masterpiece of outré animation and wildly ambitious vision and remains a triumph in animated feature film". [39] The film has since developed a cult following. [5]

Soundtrack

Rock & Rule
Soundtrack album by
Various artists
ReleasedUnreleased
Genre Rock, pop

Songs from Iggy Pop, Lou Reed, Cheap Trick, Debbie Harry, and Earth, Wind & Fire feature on the soundtrack. [40]

Presumably, due to the film's limited release and the fact that the artists were under contract to different record labels, a proper album was never issued, although a promotional cassette was given to the press featuring nine songs from the movie. [41] The only songs to be commercially released are three by Cheap Trick, which were issued in their 1996 boxed set Sex, America, Cheap Trick , as well as Earth, Wind and Fire's sole contribution entitled "Dance, Dance, Dance", which was released as a digital single in 2012, [42] and Iggy Pop's "Pain and Suffering", which finally surfaced as a bonus track on the 2019 re-release of his album Zombie Birdhouse [43] (an entirely different recording of the song was included on the album's 1991 reissue). Additionally, Debbie Harry revised the lyrics to "Angel's Song" and retitled it "Maybe for Sure", which was featured on her 1989 album Def, Dumb & Blonde . [44]

Critical reception

LA Weekly called the soundtrack "a mixed bag of rock songs" with the "standout track" being "Earth, Wind & Fire's funky club jam 'Dance, Dance, Dance'". [4] Keith Breese of Contact Music noted that the soundtrack "certainly feels contemporary", with "Debbie Harry's addictive 'Angel Song' as the highlight". [39]

Track listing

No.TitleArtistLength
1."Angel's Song" Debbie Harry  
2."Send Love Through"Debbie Harry 
3."Send Love Through-Finale"Debbie Harry & Robin Zander  
4."Pain & Suffering" Iggy Pop  
5."My Name Is Mok" Lou Reed  
6."Triumph"Lou Reed 
7."Born to Raise Hell" Cheap Trick  
8."I'm the Man"Cheap Trick 
9."Ohm Sweet Ohm"Cheap Trick 
10."Dance Dance Dance" Earth, Wind & Fire  
11."Hot Dogs and Sushi" Melleny Brown  

[40] [45]

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Thundarr the Barbarian</i> American 1980–1981 animated series

Thundarr the Barbarian is an American Saturday morning animated series, created by Steve Gerber and produced by Ruby-Spears Productions. The series ran for two seasons on ABC from October 4, 1980, to October 31, 1981, and was rerun on NBC in 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nelvana</span> Canadian animation studio

Nelvana Limited is a Canadian animation studio and entertainment company owned by Corus Entertainment. Founded in July 1971 by Michael Hirsh, Patrick Loubert, and Clive A. Smith, it was named after Nelvana of the Northern Lights, the first Canadian national superhero, who was created by Adrian Dingle. The company's production logo is a polar bear looking at Polaris, the North Star.

<i>Wacky Races</i> (1968 TV series) American animated television series

Wacky Races is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions for CBS on Saturday mornings. The series features 11 different cars racing against each other in various road rallies throughout North America, with all of the drivers hoping to win the title of the "World's Wackiest Racer". The show was inspired by the 1965 comedy film The Great Race.

<i>The Care Bears Movie</i> 1985 animated feature film, based on the Care Bears toy line

The Care Bears Movie is a 1985 animated musical fantasy film directed by Arna Selznick from a screenplay by Peter Sauder. It was the second feature film from the Canadian animation studio Nelvana after the 1983 film Rock & Rule, in addition to being one of the first films based directly on a toy line and the first based on Care Bears. It introduced the Care Bears characters and their companions, the Care Bear Cousins. The voice cast includes Mickey Rooney, Georgia Engel, Jackie Burroughs and Cree Summer. In the film, an orphanage owner tells a story about the Care Bears, who live in a cloud-filled land called Care-a-Lot. While traveling across Earth, the Bears help two lonely children named Kim and Jason, who lost their parents in a car accident, and also save Nicholas, a young magician's apprentice, from an evil spirit's influence. Deep within a place called the Forest of Feelings, Kim, Jason and their friends soon meet another group of creatures known as the Care Bear Cousins.

<i>The Wild Thornberrys Movie</i> 2002 American film directed by Jeff McGrath and Cathy Malkasian

The Wild Thornberrys Movie is a 2002 American animated fantasy adventure film based on the television series of the same name. It was produced by Klasky Csupo and distributed by Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies. Directed by Jeff McGrath and Cathy Malkasian, the film follows the show's protagonist, Eliza Thornberry as she goes on a quest to save a cheetah cub from ruthless poachers. The film was released on December 20, 2002, to mostly positive reviews and grossed more than $60 million worldwide. It is the first installment in the The Wild Thornberrys film series.

<i>Care Bears Movie II: A New Generation</i> 1986 animated film by Dale Schott

Care Bears Movie II: A New Generation is a 1986 animated musical fantasy film produced by LBS Communications and Nelvana. It is the third animated feature from Nelvana and the second film based on the Care Bears franchise. It was directed by Dale Schott, written by Peter Sauder, and produced by Nelvana's three founders; Michael Hirsh, Patrick Loubert, and Clive A. Smith. It stars the voices of Alyson Court, Cree Summer, Maxine Miller and Hadley Kay. In the story, The Great Wishing Star tells the origins of the Care Bears and the story of their first Caring Mission. True Heart Bear and Noble Heart Horse lead the other Care Bears and Care Bear Cousins in aiding Christy, a young camper who is tempted by the evil shape-shifting Dark Heart. This is also the first appearance of the Care Bear Cubs, who also had their own line of toys.

<i>The Care Bears Adventure in Wonderland</i> 1987 film

The Care Bears Adventure in Wonderland is a 1987 animated musical fantasy film and the third theatrically released film in the Care Bears franchise. It was released in the United States and Canada on August 7, 1987, by Cineplex Odeon Films, and is based on Lewis Carroll's Alice stories. The fourth feature film made at Toronto's Nelvana studio, it was directed by staff member Raymond Jafelice and produced by the firm's founders. It starred the voices of Keith Knight, Bob Dermer, Jim Henshaw, Tracey Moore and Elizabeth Hanna. In the film, the Care Bears must rescue the Princess of Wonderland from the Evil Wizard and his assistants, Dim and Dumb. After the White Rabbit shows them her photo, the Bears and Cousins search around the Earth for her before enlisting an unlikely replacement, an ordinary girl named Alice, to save her true look-alike. Venturing into Wonderland, the group encounters a host of strange characters, among them a rapping Cheshire Cat and the Jabberwocky.

Patrick Loubert is one of the founders of the Canadian animation studio, Nelvana Limited, along with Clive A. Smith and Michael Hirsh. He has produced, and executive-produced, much of the company's most memorable fare.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clive A. Smith</span> British director and animator (born 1944)

Clive A. Smith is a British expatriate director and animator who, along with Michael Hirsh and Patrick Loubert, founded Canadian animation studio Nelvana in 1971.

<i>The Backyardigans</i> American animated childrens television series

The Backyardigans is an animated musical children's television series created by Janice Burgess. The characters are designed by children's book author and illustrator Dan Yaccarino. The series was written and recorded at Nickelodeon Animation Studio. It centers on five animal neighbors who imagine themselves on fantastic adventures in their backyard. Each episode is set to a different musical genre and features four songs, composed by Evan Lurie with lyrics by McPaul Smith. The Backyardigans' adventures span many different genres and settings. The show's writers took inspiration from action-adventure movies, and many episodes are parodies of movies.

<i>The Devil and Daniel Mouse</i> 1978 television film directed by Clive A. Smith

The Devil and Daniel Mouse is a 1978 Canadian animated Halloween television special, based on the 1936 short tale The Devil and Daniel Webster by Stephen Vincent Benét. The Devil and Daniel Mouse is the second television special produced by the Canadian animation firm Nelvana Ltd.

Charles Bonifacio is a Canadian animator who worked on Nelvana productions such as Rock and Rule, Inspector Gadget, Star Wars: Ewoks, the Care Bears television series and the first two Care Bears movies of the 1980s. He was director of animation on The Care Bears Movie and on Care Bears Movie II: A New Generation. In the 1990s, he worked on FernGully: The Last Rainforest and Disney's Mulan.

<i>Babar: The Movie</i> 1989 Canadian film

Babar: The Movie is a 1989 animated adventure film based on the characters of Jean de Brunhoff's eponymous children's books. It serves as the season finale to the first season of the TV series, as the second season started airing shortly after.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maybe for Sure</span> 1990 single by Deborah Harry

"Maybe for Sure" is a 1989 song by the American singer Debbie Harry, released as a single from her third solo album Def, Dumb & Blonde.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ezra Koenig</span> American rock musician (born 1984)

Ezra Michael Koenig is an American musician, singer-songwriter, record producer, and internet radio personality. He is best known as the lead vocalist, guitarist, and primary songwriter of indie rock band Vampire Weekend. Additionally, Koenig is the creator of the Netflix animated comedy series Neo Yokio and also hosts the Apple Music radio talk show Time Crisis with Ezra Koenig. Time Crisis is airing its ninth season, as of 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Debbie Harry</span> American singer-songwriter and actress (born 1945)

Deborah Ann Harry is an American singer, songwriter and actress, best known as the lead vocalist of the band Blondie. Four of her songs with the band reached No.1 on the US charts between 1979 and 1981.

Beth Andersen is an American singer and voice actress from Lexington, Kentucky.

Arna Selznick is a Canadian animator, best known for directing Nelvana's 1985 animated film The Care Bears Movie. Arna owns and operates a studio called Dancingmonkeys with her husband/partner John van Bruggen.

Lenora Hume is a Canadian animation Producer, Cinematographer, and Production Executive who has worked for Nelvana, The Walt Disney Company, and Hit Entertainment.

<i>Hazbin Hotel</i> American adult animated musical comedy TV series

Hazbin Hotel is an American adult animated musical comedy television series created by Vivienne "VivziePop" Medrano. The series revolves around Charlie Morningstar, princess of Hell, on her quest to find a way for sinners to be "rehabilitated" and allowed into Heaven, via her "Hazbin Hotel", as an alternative to Heaven's annual "Extermination" of souls due to Hell's overpopulation. The series is produced by independent entertainment company A24 and animation studio Bento Box Entertainment, in collaboration with Amazon Studios.

References

  1. "Rock & Rule". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on 2020-03-02. Retrieved 2020-03-02.
  2. "'Rock & Rule' Is An Animated Musical Masterpiece That Needs To Be Acknowledged". Ranker. 2021-09-23. Archived from the original on 2020-03-04. Retrieved 2020-07-17.
  3. Lenburg, Jeff (1999). The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons. Checkmark Books. p. 202. ISBN   0-8160-3831-7 . Retrieved 6 June 2020.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Connell J., Sean (November 10, 2010). "Rock & Rule Blu-Ray Release: Debbie Harry and Cheap Trick vs. Cartoon Guitar Mutants (and Lou Reed!)". LA Weekly.com. Archived from the original on March 2, 2020. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  5. 1 2 "22 Animated Cult Classics Worth Checking Out - MovieWeb". 11 January 2023. Archived from the original on 2023-01-12. Retrieved 2023-01-12.
  6. Nordicity Group Ltd. (February 2007). "The Case for Kids Programming: Children's and Youth Audio-Visual Production in Canada" (PDF). Canadian Film and Television Production Association. p. 24. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2011-07-06. Retrieved 2010-05-07. 1956: Le Village enchanté, becomes Canada's first animated feature film
  7. Clive Smith (director) (2005). Rock & Rule Audio Commentary (DVD). Unearthed Films. Event occurs at 2:13. We started development of the film in 1978 as "Drats," and it was a film that was skewed to a much younger audience, with softer, younger characters, and it was a bit more Grimms' Fairy Tale quality about it.
  8. Townsend, Emru (2005-06-07). "Rock and Rule (Part 1)". Archived from the original on 2017-07-14. Clive Smith: It was sort of a post-apocalyptic world where some dreadful disaster has happened. And out of that came a new race of creatures. Mutants, which were partly animal, partly human. When it was Drats!, they were a lot fuzzier and warmer and friendlier. Rounder.
  9. Rock & Rule — Daily Script
  10. Townshend, Emru (1997). "Tom Sito: Looking back on the leaner times making Rock & Rule". The Critical Eye. Archived from the original on 2004-08-25. Retrieved 2020-03-11. The original name of Rock & Rule was Drats!, because they were meant to be evolved rats who became cognizant after the human race was obliterated, but that was never really made clear.
  11. Townshend, Emru (1997). "Clive Smith: The rise and fall of Rock & Rule". The Critical Eye. Archived from the original on 2004-09-04. Retrieved 2020-03-11. We had an idea where Angel, who started off as a Drat, basically normal Drat-type person. But when Mok finds her and steals her, rather than control her through some electro-digital futuristic device, which he does in the film, he actually changed her into a guitar. So Mok actually had this sort of feminine form that was half-guitar, half-woman, shall we say, for his final performance. So as he played her, so she sang. It was pretty, kind of, erotic.
  12. Townsend, Emru (2005-06-07). "Rock and Rule (Part 1)". Archived from the original on 2017-07-14. Clive Smith: I think some of the thinking of that was we were convinced that it was harder to animate humans than it was to animate fuzzy little creatures.
  13. "Rock & Rule Photo Gallery: Production Art". IMDb. Archived from the original on 2022-06-08. Retrieved 2020-03-10.
  14. Townshend, Emru (1997). "Clive Smith: The rise and fall of Rock & Rule". The Critical Eye. Archived from the original on 2004-09-04. Retrieved 2020-03-11. And we were advised at the time, I guess by certain acquaintances in Hollywood, that we should be aiming at an older audience. And so we basically turned the picture around completely. And just targeted it much, much older.
  15. Townsend, Emru (2005-06-07). "Rock and Rule (Part 1)". Archived from the original on 2017-07-14. Clive Smith: We didn't have a script, we had an idea.
  16. Kraft, David Anthony (1983). "A Life of Its Own: The Animation of Rock & Rule". Marvel Super Special #25. Neither script nor storyboard was developed chronologically.
  17. Kraft, David Anthony (1983). "A Life of Its Own: The Animation of Rock & Rule". Marvel Super Special #25. They began by creating a very rough concept of the story, a mere skeletal structure onto which any number of plot and story elements might be added.
  18. Townsend, Emru (2005-06-07). "Rock and Rule (Part 1)". Archived from the original on 2017-07-14. Clive Smith: We had a concept, and we started to develop not just the writing, but on a parallel stream we started to develop characters and the animators themselves all contributed the development of the characters and the development of the story. But story ideas would come up, we would write sequences that reflected this very rough concept, and those sequences then would be developed.
  19. Walmsley, Ann (May 27, 1985). "A Bearish Movie with Bullish Results". Maclean's. Maclean Hunter Limited. p. 54. Retrieved 2020-03-10. More than three years in the making, the futuristic rock 'n' roll film employed more than 300 animators
  20. Mazurkewich 1999, p. 111.
  21. "The Making of Rock and Rule (Nelvana Documentary)". June 13, 1983 via Internet Archive.
  22. Rock & Rule (Infinimata Press)
  23. Rock & Rule — Newspapers.com
  24. Staff (April 12, 1982). "Briefly: Local animated film finds a distributor". The Globe and Mail . CTVglobemedia.
  25. Walmsley, Ann (May 27, 1985). "A Bearish Movie with Bullish Results". Maclean's. Maclean Hunter Limited. p. 54. Retrieved 2020-03-10. Although the CBC aired Ring of Power two months ago and Embassy Home Entertainment will distribute it as a video cassette, Loubert says he does not expect it to reach the big screen.
  26. "Rock and Rule Ending Comparison-YouTube". YouTube . Archived from the original on 2021-12-21.
  27. "Rock & Rule (1983) [ML100728]". LaserDisc Database. Archived from the original on 2023-07-12. Retrieved 2020-03-11.
  28. O'Connell, Sean J. (2010-11-10). "Rock & Rule Blu-Ray Release: Debbie Harry and Cheap Trick vs. Cartoon Guitar Mutants (and Lou Reed!)". LA Weekly. Archived from the original on 2020-03-10. Retrieved 2020-03-11. It ended up shelved for over twenty years; surfacing only as fill-in material for HBO and Showtime in the '80s and circulating on bootleg VHS tapes often incorrectly crediting Ralph Bakshi as the director.
  29. "Movie Information". The Rock & Rule Homepage. Archived from the original on 2008-03-12. Retrieved 2020-03-11. Nelvana use to offer to get a technician to make a VHS copy for $79.00, but they have since stopped doing this in anticipation of the DVD release
  30. De Wit, Alex Dudok (20 December 2019). "You Can Now Watch Nelvana's Cult Sci-Fi Musical 'Rock & Rule' For Free On Youtube". Cartoon Brew. Archived from the original on 6 June 2021. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  31. "Marvel Super Special #25". Grand Comics Database.
  32. Friedt, Stephan (July 2016). "Marvel at the Movies: The House of Ideas' Hollywood Adaptations of the 1970s and 1980s". Back Issue! . Raleigh, North Carolina: TwoMorrows Publishing (89): 68.
  33. Salicrup, Jim; Higgins, Mike (October 1986). "J. Marc DeMatteis (part 2)". Comics Interview . No. #39. Fictioneer Books. p. 7.
  34. "Spotlight on the music of Rock & Rule". Vol. 24, no. 3. Spin Magazine. March 2008. p. 110.{{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
  35. Maslin, Janet (August 5, 1985). "ANIMATED DUO". The New York Times . Archived from the original on July 12, 2023. Retrieved November 5, 2011.
  36. "Trailers". American Film. The American Film Institute. May 1983. Retrieved 2020-03-11.
  37. Young, Graham (October 23, 2012). "Rock & Rule (PG)". Birmingham Mail. Archived from the original on July 8, 2020. Retrieved July 8, 2020.
  38. McPadden, Mike (February 1, 2015). "Thirteen Trippy Rock'n'Roll Cartoons You Should Almost Definitely Not Show to Children". vice.com. Vice. Archived from the original on July 7, 2020. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
  39. 1 2 Breese, Keith. "Rock & Rule". contactmusic.net. Archived from the original on 2018-08-21. Retrieved 2018-08-21.
  40. 1 2 "Various Artists: Rock & Rule". Allmusic.com. Archived from the original on 2018-05-16. Retrieved 2018-05-16.
  41. Gilchrist, Garrett (August 30, 2014). "Rock & Rule Thread". orangecow.org. Archived from the original on June 16, 2021. Retrieved March 10, 2020. It was previously believed that no official soundtrack album had ever been issued for Rock & Rule. However, as it turns out, a handful of film critics received a cassette tape featuring nine songs ("Hot Dogs and Sushi" and "Send Love Through" were omitted).
  42. "Dance Dance Dance". facebook.com. Earth, Wind & Fire. December 18, 2012. Archived from the original on 2022-02-26.
  43. Peacock, Tim (April 25, 2019). "Lost Iggy Pop Classic 'Zombie Birdhouse' Set For Reissue In June". Archived from the original on July 12, 2020. Retrieved March 11, 2020. 'Zombie Birdhouse' also contains a previously unreleased version of 'Pain and Suffering', featuring Blondie's Debbie Harry on backing vocals. The song was originally recorded for the ground-breaking animated feature film 'Rock & Rule'.
  44. circuit, wet (September 30, 2015). "Rock & Rule (1983): The Coolest Glam-Rock New Wave Post-Apocalyptic Animated Musical You've Never Seen". retrocinema magazine. Archived from the original on December 21, 2015. Retrieved March 10, 2020. Harry later re-worked Angel's song Send Love Through with new lyrics, releasing it as Maybe for Sure on her solo album Deaf Dumb & Blonde.
  45. "Playing Deep:The Ballad of Melleny Melody". FYI Music News.ca. 17 June 2016. Archived from the original on 17 May 2018. Retrieved 16 May 2018.

Works cited