The Rock-afire Explosion

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.

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.

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!

I went into this thinking that it would be more centered around the band and the animatronics themselves, and was wildly disappointed. Instead, it was primarily focused on the nostalgia the other, older people had for the band. Which is fine in itself- however, it was wildly disappointing to me. I am 15, and I never got to experience the RAE for myself, however it is a large special interest of mine, so watching this was not only a disappointment, but immensely boring. Who wants to watch random adults talk about how much they miss the band? I was expecting so much more, but maybe it's my fault for having such high expectations. I don't think I would ever actually watch this again.