Rock It! is a German teen and musical film directed by Mike Marzuk, released in 2010.

Fifteen-year-old Julia from St. Tönis near Viersen is the daughter of a piano teacher and conductor and a classical pianist. Because her parents want Julia to attend the prestigious private music boarding school “Amadeus,” she takes part in a six-week preparatory course for the entrance exam.

At the boarding school, fifteen-year-old Nick works as an electrician. He is also the lead singer and guitarist of the band “Rock It.” Julia listens to one of the band’s rehearsals and falls in love with Nick. At the same time, she realizes that she likes rock music much more than the classical music she only plays for her parents’ sake.

Soon, the keyboard player Marc leaves “Rock It,” and Julia sees her chance. Her friend Francesca helps her disguise herself and take the vacant position under the new name Toni as the band’s keyboard player. During a rehearsal, Toni and Nick write a song together that becomes very important to both of them.

However, the sneaky and career-obsessed Betty notices that Julia, her duet partner, is distracted during rehearsals and exposes her secret identity. Julia must decide whether to pursue a career as a professional pianist or follow her dream. Nick leaves her after finding out that she attends Amadeus.

During the big audition, Francesca gets hiccups and is unable to perform at first. With Julia’s help, she finally manages to perform, and everyone is thrilled. Julia then discovers that Betty was the one who exposed her and caused all the trouble.

When Julia is supposed to perform on stage with Betty, she stops playing after only a few bars and instead sings the song she wrote with Nick. Nick joins her on stage, and they sing it together. The jury loves the song, and in the end, Nick and Julia kiss. A new career for Rock It at Amadeus begins.

Filming took place in August and September 2009 in Passau and the surrounding area. The Auersperg-Gymnasium Passau Freudenhain served as the backdrop for the Amadeus music boarding school. Choreographer Selatin Kara created the dances and choreographies especially for the film and rehearsed them with the actors. The film’s production costs amounted to 3.6 million euros (2026: around 5 million euros).^[1]

• Wir lieben die Musik – Rock It! Cast
• Du wirst ein Rock It sein – Maria Ehrich & Emilia Schüle
• Flieg mit mir – Rock It!
• Ich will hier raus – Emilia Schüle
• Die Welt wird uns gehören – Vivien Wulf & Emilia Schüle
• Das wird genial – Rock It! Cast
• Let’s Rock It – Rock It!
• Du fehlst mir so – Emilia Schüle
• Wie die Welt leuchtet – Emilia Schüle & Daniel Axt
• Nur du und ich (credits) – Rock It!
• Feel So High (wedding dance) – Franxon Meyer

The film received mixed reviews.

Kino.de gave the film a positive review. Kino.de described the movie as a “clever German musical in the style of High School Musical” and praised the “excellent supporting actors such as Vivien Wulf as an intriguing Paris Hilton imitation and Maria Ehrich as the cheerful and spirited Francesca.”^[2]

The review concluded:

“A German musical stands or falls with its German song lyrics. If they come across as embarrassing and stiff, the film is already lost. But the songs in Rock It are fresh, authentic, and contemporary […] It only remains to mention that Emilia Schüle (Freche Mädchen) and Daniel Axt (Die Brücke) harmonize perfectly as a romantic couple.”^[2]

Cinema.de also viewed the film rather positively: “The lighthearted boarding school comedy at times recalls the awkward charm of the teacher comedies from the early 1970s. But despite all the clichés, Rock It! is fun — mainly thanks to the carefree performances of the young cast.”^[3]

There were also negative reviews. Harald Mühlbeyer of Cinefacts.de wrote: “The film is really only enjoyable on a straightforward level for those who genuinely think that Mick Jagger and Take That are the only veterans of past pop culture they know. Everyone else does not need to see this film, and if they absolutely must — perhaps as companions to adolescents — one can only wish them enjoyment on a meta level.”^[4]

• Rock it IMDb
• Movie Website
• Report of Deutschen Film- und Medienbewertung
• Interview about the movie with Emilia Schüle and Daniel Axt
• Featurette on the Disney Youtube channel

  Category:Teen films Category:German musical films Category:2010 films

Category:Draft articles about films Category:Draft articles about music Category:Pending AfC submissions Category:2010 musical films Category:2010 German films