Welcome to “Friday Favorites” which highlight some of my favorite movie-related things.

I’m not particularly a fan of Jack Black.  Sure, I like Kung Fu Panda, he wasn’t bad in Tropic Thunder, and admittedly his extended cameo in The Muppets was fantastic, but otherwise I generally avoid his movies.  However, he has one performance that I think is truly fantastic, and that is as Dewey Finn in School of Rock.  I realize that there’s not a lot of heavy acting required for the role, as Jack Black is basically playing himself, but I was struck by something when I caught the film on TV recently that I hadn’t noticed before.

I first saw School of Rock on a cruise ship (repeatedly for the entire week, as it played over and over all day), and enjoyed it immensely.  It was a lot of fun, had great music, and was filled with talented kids who are actual musicians.  I hadn’t seen Jack Black in much at this point, but I liked the energy he brought to the role.  Joan Cusack was great, as always, and I thought the script was a lot of fun.  I love cheesy things, so the film’s gooey ode to rock ‘n roll greatly appealed to me.  All in all, it was a film that stuck with me, and it’s one that I often return to when I’m looking for something light and fun to watch.

What I hadn’t noticed before was how perfectly Jack Black’s acting meshes with the kids in the film.  It’s a tough thing for an adult to act onscreen with children.  There’s always a balance in the adults between giving a performance they’re proud of and giving a performance that enables the children in the film to shine.  When it works, the kids feel natural onscreen, whether in a drama or a comedy, and the kid-adult interactions are the key to that naturalness.  When it doesn’t work, the entire film feels stiff and awkward, and the kids feel like they’re just reading lines instead of acting.  A good child performance relies heavily on the director, of course, but there’s something special when the adults act in such a way that encourages the kids (see: the entire Harry Potter film series).

Go back and watch School of Rock and keep an eye on the kids whenever they’re sharing a scene with Jack Black.  Keep in mind that most of the kids (and all of the kids in the band) are not actors, but musicians.  In particular, look at the scene when he’s first assembling the band, and getting the kids set up on their instruments.  They all have big smiles, clearly loving the moment and the encouragement they’re getting from Jack Black.  It’s a reaction that’s hard to fake, and something you don’t see too often on film.  He obviously is acting to be funny, but he’s not trying to entertain the audience in the theater but instead entertain the kids in front of him.  It’s an important distinction that is generally lost in movies with kids.  Check out Lawrence’s smile at 0:53 in the clip below, that’s the sort reaction from a kid that’s impossible to fake.

When you watch the film with the viewpoint that Jack Black isn’t hamming it up for the camera but is hamming it up for the kids, the whole movie has a different vibe.  It’s almost hard to describe, but it’s clear that he built a relationship with the kids, treating them in a way that made them feel comfortable and pressure-free.  It really shows during the end credits, during an improvised jam session when it’s clear that the kids love him.  Their reactions are so unfiltered that there’s no way it’s just acting.  He goes out of his way to bring the best out of the kids, both musically and in their acting.  When he encourages shy pianist Lawrence, it feels like he’s actually talking shy kid Robert Tsai and bringing him out of his shell.  When he talks to backup singer Tomika about her body image issues, it feels like he’s talking to Maryam Hassan and every kid out there who feels like they don’t match society’s “ideal” image of what they should look like.

The film just celebrated its 10 year anniversary (holy crap I feel old), and the cast reunited for a special screening of the film.  From the number of the “kids” (now adults) who showed up, including megastar Miranda Cosgrove, the entire band and many of the other members of the class, and the memories they shared it’s clear that they had a great experience filming the movie.  I think a lot of that feeling is due entirely to Jack Black, and he created an atmosphere that enabled a quality experience.  It certainly shows in the final product onscreen, even if I’m just speculating about the behind-the-scenes experience (though I think the “kids’” attitude at the reunion is pretty solid evidence that they enjoyed their time making the film).

The overwhelming reaction from the audience at the reunion speaks even louder about the impact the film made on people.  It’s easy to say that it’s just people enjoying Jack Black’s usual shtick, but the huge ovation Robert Tsai received along with the calls for him and Black to repeat their secret handshake speak more to the ensemble as a whole.  Very few movies generate reactions and memories this strong, and I give Jack Black a lot of the credit for that.  Sometimes the sign of a great performance is knowing when to take the lead and dominate his scenes but sometimes it’s knowing when to get out of the way and let others shine.  And sometimes a great performance requires an actor going out of his way to bring the best out of his costars.

What do you think?  Do you like School of Rock (perhaps in spite of not usually liking Jack Black)?  Have you noticed how much the kids seem to love being in the movie?  Can you think of another film where an adult actor obviously went out of his way to encourage the kids with whom he is acting?  Do you now have the climactic song, “School of Rock,” stuck in your head?  Let me know in the comments!