While perhaps overlong, the film is packed with rocking music and a game cast that keeps the energy going and you'll be hard pressed not to be swept up in it. It's loud and over the top but it embraces its absurdity that would normally have characters breaking into song at almost any moment feel unnatural to say the least. With almost non-stop music and most characters having a moment in the spotlight through a song, Rock of Ages is a perfectly entertaining movie with a performance from Tom Cruise like no other that carries most of the film's laughs.
Noting the disappointing box office performance of the film, it can be credited to an unfocused marketing campaign that had trouble selling the film's admittedly flimsy and predictable story and not highlighting the main characters in the film, particularly as the film is driven by its two youngest stars. This would of given audiences something tangible to be attracted to. Instead it advertised through the cheesy line 'nothin' but a good time' packing it's advertisements with the stars and the music but never seeming like a 'must see' specifically considering the talent involved
