The Rock-afire Explosion

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.

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.

Director Brett Whitcomb could have easily taken a condescending attitude toward Thrash and the other Rock-afire enthusiasts, but instead he presents the material in a nonjudgmental fashion that makes The Rock-afire Explosion surprisingly moving at times. Thrash's dream may seem silly or superficial to you or me, but that doesn't matter; it's his dream and he made it come true, and how many of us can say the same? In its own funny way, the film investigates the power of nostalgia and the artifacts of childhood, as well as the tangible and emotional wreckage that's left behind when a fleeting moment of pop culture has passed.

Posted by Scott Von Doviak (The Screengrab)

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.

The documentary simultaneously examines the life of Aaron Fechter--engineer and inventor of Showbiz's iconic musical centerpiece, and the founder of the company that produced the animatronic marvels, Creative Engineering. It's an almost heartbreaking glimpse into the perils of achieving incredible success at a young age, and the slow torture of being unable to recreate that success over the remainder of a lifetime. Whereas the bits about Chris Thrash are mostly inspiring and uplifting, the segments covering Fechter's life convey a theme of gloom and decay. And although he seems happy to discuss the "good old days", there's a quiet desperation just beneath the exterior of his optimistic outlook and upbeat personality that is truly powerful to behold.

The greatest value of this production is the incredible sincerity of the people upon whose lives it focuses. You can't act this kind of stuff; these are a collection of individuals who, not unlike the robotic band itself, have been drawn together by the love and happy memories they once had at a place called Showbiz Pizza. And it's powerful, because anyone who grew up frequenting the fabulous pizza-parlour-stage-show-arcade is likely to strongly empathize with that love and share many of the same memories. I may be getting soft in my old age, but I have to admit that I teared up during one particularly poignant moment in the documentary. That could simply be a testament to good filmmaking. Or, it could be that I just happen to fall directly into the smack-dab-middle of the target demographic for this DVD. Either way, it's a fantastic watch and I highly recommend it to everyone who grew up in the 80s loving pizza, arcade games, and ridiculously overdone animatronic stage shows.

Matt 'gzsfrk' Williams