The Rock-afire Explosion

WIth superb direction, great interview subjects, amazing subject matter, and great soundtrack, this film has everything a good film needs.

I knew a little bit about The Rock-afire Explosion before seeing this film, but afterwards, I love them and admire the companies and people who created this great film.

Aaron Fechter (The Rock-afire's inventor) is a very intelligent man and it is clear, through the film, that we have not seen the last of him. Besides his work with The Rock-afire on YouTube, he also has many projects in development.

I would highly recommend this DVD. It's a must have DVD for the holidays!

It's a fascinating look at the Anamatroic pizza-place fan community, but on a deeper leaver it's about a whole bunch of people who can't stop looking back. The fans are really invested in their childhood memories of these robots, and I can't throw rocks because I'm sure I'm on the right side of the bell curve when it comes to romanticizing the pop culture of my own childhood, but the owner of company? As far as I can tell from the documentary, he can't let go either. At his height he once employed 300 people, his business crashed and he had to fire all of them over the course of a decade until he was the only one left, and it seem like in his mind he is a bit haunted by that. Really fascinating documentary.

Pizza for me has always been synonymous with fun. Nowadays, it's pizza and beer. Thenadays, it was pizza and weird fu%k*n' animatronic creatures singing songs, making jokes and scaring the crap out of all the wimpy kids. And I know I'm not alone on this. For those of us fortunate enough to be children in the 80s, we had Showbiz Pizza restaurants spread throughout the country, stocked with all of the latest videogames and an animatronic band called The Rock-afire Explosion. The 80s were a long time ago – godam%it – but filmmaker Brett Whitcomb has reached back in time and brought forward a chunk of our past that has helped reignite interest in this band that would play the perfect soundtrack for pizza munching. A trailer for the documentary "The Rock-afire Explosion" hit YouTube a little while back and has had people talking all over the Web. And just recently the film has hit the festival circuit. So does it live up to its hype? If you remember and love The Rock-afire Explosion from your youth, then, yes.

This documentary cuts back and forth between two stories, or rather, it cuts back and forth between two periods of time in the life of The Rock-afire Explosion. Yes, there is a ton of vintage footage for nostalgia freaks to drool over, accompanied by interview footage of Rock-afire creator Aaron Fechter who lays down the history of this animatronic band. But then we also see where Rock-afire is at today and it's not the cheeriest of pictures as we see that Fechter was driven out of business and his creation made nearly extinct, however, the light at the end of the tunnel is a group of lifelong fans who still devote themselves to the Rock-afire Explosion, including one such fan – Chris Thrash – who saved up a load of cash to purchase his own complete Rock-afire Explosion show which he operates at this home, often for lucky families who bring their children to bask in the wonder. And watching these kids freak out, it's all too apparent that The Rock-afire still has that magic. Thrash is also the one that videotaped his band's performances playing to more modern music and posted his clips to YouTube. It's these clips that really rekindled interest in The Rock-afire.

We learn a great deal about our pizza parlor heroes, as well as the people that created them and the people that are doing their best to keep them alive. All in all, it's a pretty marvelous celebration of passion and fun, especially if you love docs about obsessive fans. Obsessive people have been the cornerstone of some great – okay, highly amusing – documentary film-making. This film adds to that heap of fun.

by Eric Campos of Film Threat

I had the pleasure of watching this documentary at the Big Sky Documentary Film Festival. As someone who grew up in the 80s, this film brought back a lot of memories for me.

This movie balances the passion that others have towards The Rock-afire Explosion with the man who actually created (and still owns all rights to) the animatronics and characters.

If you remember seeing these in Showbiz Pizza when you were growing up, then this is the movie for you to see. If you are passionate about something that you collect, then this movie will also resonate with you.

The Rock-afire Explosion was an 80's hair band that played most often in Showbiz Pizza Place establishments. The band was fronted completely by animatronic musicians, including bears, a wolf and drunken bird.

Aaron Fechter was the creator of The Rock-afire band, but his first idea to change the world was a gas-saving car! He literally built a car from the ground up... and while it worked, money was an issue holding back production of the vehicle. Fechter toiled with inventions and ideas, before being commissioned to create something new - robotic animals.

Soon enough, Showbiz Pizza and The Rock-afire Explosion were a match made in heaven. Pizza and robots?! What else could one ask for out of a restaurant? Showbiz built a great reputation among families, and kids were drawn by not only "tokens for good grades", but most importantly, the multi-instrumental band that played for patrons, while still having time to crack jokes with one another. Inevitably, all good things come to an end, and this documentary is the story of what happens to the people that loved the franchise and band the most.

At the beginning of this film, I knew only of the wonderful modern online videos of the band, created by dedicated fans. These same people are featured here - namely Chris Thrash. Thrash has spent his life trying to get the band back together, and with the help of Fechter, he just might.

I didn't expect to be moved watching this, but when it comes to the story of this beloved family business, you cannot help but to be. Thrash is such a kind-hearted person, and the only thing he has ever wanted is to see the animal band back in action. Fechter, the creator and sole owner of the remaining sculpted band members, has spent his life focused on the product (even through the decline), but he's proud to have created something people still enjoy today. These characters are real people, and their stories are just as lovingly depicted as the robots that give the film its name. Hopefully thanks to this documentary we will see them for many more years to come.