It's time for a bit of really bad Christian propaganda, and ladies and gentlemen, this is a doozie, as in this is probably one of the worst, because everyone that was involved in it had absolutely no idea what the hell they were talking about, nor does it represent the majority of the Christian religion."Rock: It's Your Decision" is a movie about a young teen who once loved listening to rock music, but his parents urged him to see his pastor, who convinces him that "all rock music is evil", and gets him to preach to those around him that they shouldn't be listening to it, because it promotes satanism and the occult, which causes all of his friends to turn on him and, let's be real here, destroy his entire social life. In the end, he begins to preach to his fellow churchgoers about his discoveries and how everything that we do should worship Jesus Christ.Where do I begin with this? First of all, I'm quite the audiophile, meaning I listen to a lot of music everyday, primarily rock, metal, blues, and jazz, all four of which have been prior targets from religious zealots that believe that it's the "devil's music" (Jerry Lee Lewis' childhood and career in a nutshell), and I'm a non-practicing Catholic who still adheres to my religion's beliefs, just not too seriously. Nobody, and I mean NOBODY is going to convince me that listening to these genres of music will turn me into a satanist. Secondly, this movie was made at a time when the '80s New Age movement was just getting off the ground, and metal bands like Twisted Sister, Scorpions, and Judas Priest were some of the most popular groups of the decade. Third, and finally, the audience for this was relatively small, and when I mean small, I mean a few hundred out of hundreds of thousands of individuals in the United States alone. The only people that are going to see this are children and teens who go to Sunday School taught by a strict, closed-minded instructor who believes in the old-fashioned ways of teaching, including whipping children with a paddle or a belt.I respect other peoples beliefs, and I find learning about other religions is a fascinating and educational experience, but one thing I've learned from being informed about other religious practices is that there are those that take their beliefs to a whole new level, as in, they force it on others regardless. With this film, unless you want to watch it with a few friends just to riff on it (a la MST3K) and laugh at how extremely stupid it is, don't even bother.

Purports to tell the story of a young Christian man's discovery that rock music is (allegedly) evil, and his subsequent salvation, but film ends up showing us a guy becoming so unlikeable, homophobic, and holier-than-thou that we start to root for his friends to save themselves, and get away from this fruitcake.He ends up completely alienated from all his friends, and his girlfriend, and becomes so utterly paranoid about the evils of rock music, that it ruins his life.There's this film's hero for you! Imagine if Jack Nicholson had found Christianity, rather than go bonkers, in The Shining, and it had been an after school special.Horribly outdated, even for the 1980s, it seems more like 1940s Bible belt propaganda for the already converted. Or, was the purpose of this film to show how religion can, and does, ruin some peoples' lives? The film's climactic sermon makes it especially difficult to tell.

***UNAPOLOGETIC SPOILERS*** I probably shouldn't use the Cinema Snob's YouTube videos as a form of reference. Not because I disagree with that video, in fact I agree completely. Nevertheless I saw that video, and there were comments about it from people who claimed to be Born-Again Christians and disregard the movie's message about rock and roll being evil. Christian Rock actually came out more than a decade before this movie did, but I always thought it was a product of the 1970's, primarily with the advent of rock operas like "Godspell," and "Jesus Christ, Superstar." I was wrong; it actually came out before the "Summer of Love."Produced by a bunch of churches in Alabama, the alleged hero of the movie is a teenager named "Jeff" who was around the same age I was at the time. Jeff is in a born-again Christian family, and he likes rock and roll. His parents can't stand him blasting it on his stereo, and his mother decides to call the youth pastor at his local parish about it. Jeff has a few friends, including a cute girlfriend, named Melissa, a ten-to-eleven year old Ford Maverick, and an after-school job. Aside from the hassling from his parents and the repression of his church, he seems to have a relatively decent life... that is until Brother Jim Owen, that youth pastor his mom called up approaches him and tries to get him not to listen to any rock music for two weeks. At the same time, he gives the kid a book designed to con kids into thinking all rock music is evil, which obviously has to be loaded with misinterpretations. Unfortunately, he starts to believe this crap. And to make matters worse, within the first of those weeks, he was supposed to take his girlfriend to a concert by an unknown band for her birthday. No real bands are shown anywhere in this movie, although plenty are randomly mentioned. Among his idiotically new-found "information," Jeff seems to find it utterly horrifying that 12-year-olds would buy KISS albums, which is strange because among metal-heads, it's commonly accepted that somebody over the age of 14 who buys one is a metal newbie, or a wimp, or a retard.Meanwhile Jeff is completely brainwashed and starts losing his friends including his blonde babe Melissa, yet even as he's telling them all that all rock music is evil, he still can't stop playing it and still can't get along with his mom. After barging from one last party he gets into another fight with her. Finally he drives off in yet another huff and parks out into some snow-covered vacant lot (Yes, kids. The Winter of 1981-82 had snow down south), and begs God for forgiveness and pleads with him on how to deal with his dilemma. He returns to the party for one last time and tells them all that he's not going to be their friends anymore because they're all so "sinful." The next thing we know we see him at the same church delivering his own sermon on behalf of Brother Owen, apparently trying warn the kids on how they're being suckered into a life of sin by listening to KISS, The Eagles, AC-DC, Jefferson Airplane/Starship, The Rolling Stones, and other bands that kids of the 1980's were holding onto as they were trying to hold down disco and rap, and overlook new wave. The Cinema Snob covers the movie's claim that the Captain & Tenille's music was somehow evil, but he didn't mention the claim about Barry Manilow. It's hard to imagine Daryl Dragon, Toni Tenille, and Barry Manilow being put in the same league as Angus Young, Mick Jagger, David Bowie, Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, Don Henley or Glenn Frey, and yet it does just that. I wonder what he would think of bands like Stryper, Jars of Clay, Velour 100, Creed, or Switchfoot.I gave this movie two stars, but I'm being generous here. The reasons in no particular order are because one, the kids in this movie were roughly the same age as me, as I mentioned earlier, two because the actress playing Jeff's girlfriend Melissa was gorgeous, and three because of one background song I'm curious about when Jeff is in the record store and narrates about how "the beat just grabbed me." Other than that, the only thing I could recommend this for is a somewhat morbid laugh.

First off. I'm a Christian. I'm a good-two-shoes. I don't do drugs. But this is a one-sided debate. The movie can be displayed as a really rude method of displaying music is bad? Rock is that bad? Pffft. Wait till you get to some rap artist such as Snoop Dogg. I'm "ok" on rock as a taste. I listen to pop songs and techno. And even those have "suggestive themes" but its just music overall. The only that a music could do evil is if it shapes you as a person. But that is mainly your own fault, not the song. Just listening to it is nothing wrong and even God would have agreed. Its about if you take the music as a message for something. The movie is depressing. Our "protagonist", which I bet is more of an antagonist, is slowly being brainwashed by his parents. And it happens. We all get coached by our parents. And sometimes we go rogue. This movie is pretty much how I lived through. And I was given "coach" lessons about how video games are bad and ho I shouldn't be watching any movies containing a sex scene. As long as I don't go and jerk off to a nude scene in a movie I should be fine. Its not like the movie will melt my brain. -Back to the movie!- Apparently he starts to lose social connection and basically isolates himself who is now a "henchman" to his parent's opinions. Its really sad. He loses all his friends and close connections aside from family members. And his mother still watches Soap Operas which could have a nice set of arguments against too. But that is where I wonder if this is not supposed to be an "anti-rock" movie but a "anti-anti rock movie". The kid has a scene with his mom where he actually confronts his mom that she watches soap operas and talks about sexual advertisements. Which he has a fair point and I'd rather go towards that area instead. But his mother slaps him. That's my ideal point here. It clearly shows a nasty twist and basically puts his mom just or worse than his case in a perspective view.Most of the rock music does contain suggestive themes but I have heard a lot of non-Christian-related music that actually display a very a god moral like a plot in a book. Music shows emotions. And we react to music through our emotions. Just like horror movies can "scare" or "frighten" us or comedy can make us "laugh" and "smile" same with romance. We need emotions to be a social person and maintain our humanity. We cannot fully understand right and wrong without it nor share our careful decisions through it.Overall this is a terrible movie. Not because of acting, plot, etc. Its just terrible because it is indeed some sort of propaganda on the topic of something absolutely foolish at the times around the 80s. If this was the 60s or 70s that would make more sense but this is the 80s. Rock has already been acceptable to society an parents have allowed it. And let alone, Christian rock is now around the place. The kid in the end has a sermon preach about how its bad. It randomly accuses specific songs and artists such as The Eagles as being evil. Yet the song already has a meaning that is factual and his arguments go in some sort of panic mode because in the end he adds in homosexuality. That is the dumbest thing I ever heard.Overall, lets burn this movie to the pits of Hell. I even think God would damn this rubbish of a movie.By the way, I'm a Christian. I love rock, pop, country and classical and even Christian (also Christian dubstep). Nothing is wrong with the music. Its about you. Your choices, your methods on handling it as a mature person. You like rap, great. But never let music shape your personality. Be yourself. Cheesy end!