Scanialara You won't be disappointed!

VeteranLight I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

Intcatinfo A Masterpiece!

StyleSk8r At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

tavm If I hadn't previously known about his radio on-air firing by show host Arthur Godfrey, I would never have heard of Julius LaRosa. Years ago, I saw him on an old kinescope of Godfrey's show and now I just watched him in what turned out to be his only movie appearance. As the title implies, it has some Rock music in it which his singer character is trying to avoid recording since he always made it with ballads, but as his manager Conrad Janis keeps telling him "Rock 'n' Roll is not going away" as LaRosa can't make it with ballads anymore. Phyllis Newman is an aspiring songwriter whose B-side he recorded and they have a nice initially platonic romance. There's also a fine number by Della Reese and a couple by Roy Hamilton. The Rock 'n' Roll acts presented here are Danny and the Juniors (who I just watched as their mature selves in the documentary Let the Good Times Roll) singing "At the Hop" and The Royal Teens' "Short Shorts". The last one is interesting to mention because one of the members as well as a co-songwriter of that song was one Bob Gaudio who'd later became a member of a more famous group called The Four Seasons as well as write some of that group's biggest hits. Oh, and a couple more interesting points to make: The host of a dance show in the movie is Wink Martindale who I knew as the host of the game show "Tic Tac Dough" back in the late '70s. And teen singing idol Paul Anka, who was sixteen when he made his film debut here, had a hit song after making this: "Diana" which started a string of his hits throughout the rest of the '50s and early '60s. So on that note, Let's Rock is worth a look for anyone interested in these vintage things.

edagnew Other reviewers have discussed the music in detail. I would only like to say that there is great swing dancing in this movie. Especially the couple in the center of the screen. Some of their moves were astounding. From today's viewpoint it is ironic that some of the best examples of swing dancing on film is in these late 1950's rock in roll movies. At that time, however, many people thought rock was a new version of swing. About four years later rock went off in another direction, eliminating the saxophone and partner dancing. This, of course, eventually led to a rebellion against rock from 1995 to the present by many people who like to dance with a partner.

jcinefan Before rock stars went on huge concert tours and before teenagers had enough disposable income to attend such spectacles, Hollywood tried to offer recording stars exposure through cheap movies. LET'S ROCK is typical of the genre--the central idea (that mellow crooner Julius LaRosa could become a rock star) is ludicrous and the acting by LaRosa and Phyllis Newman close to amateur standards. But there are a couple of hits--Danny and The Juniors doing "At the Hop" is the highlight. Every time LaRosa tries to sing, you might as well fast forward. "Rock Around the Clock" remains the best of a bad lot.

Garydoug Obviously this isn't a rock and roll movie except for rare exceptions. More like a Frank Sinatra wanna be and couldn't be. Check out Phyllis Newman anyway. Most of the real rock is buried under a morass of retro "ballad" stuff. And don't miss Wink Martindal as a young Dick Clark lookalike;)