Catherine O’Hara’s Raunchy, Post-Apocalyptic Sci-Fi Is A Forgotten 1980s Gem

By Jennifer Asencio
| Published 1 minute ago

The world recently lost comic actress Catherine O’Hara, known for classics like Beetlejuice, Home Alone, and the series Schitt’s Creek. She has been endlessly memed and mimicked, and her work is constantly viewed by fans all over. In the 1983 Canadian animated feature Rock n’ Rule, she makes an unexpected appearance as an unusual character in a place nobody expected to find her.

Rock n’ Rule takes place in a post-apocalyptic future that is now populated by intelligent anthropomorphs and abominations mutated from the remains of a nuclear war in the distant past. A rock band led by Omar strives for fame in Ohmtown, but when Omar is upstaged at their big show by his girlfriend Angel, it causes a rift between the two.

However, Angel has caught the attention of the sinister superstar Mok, whose evil plot to raise an eldritch demon requires a very special singing voice. When Mok kidnaps Angel to raise his demon, Omar and his bandmates Izzy and Stretch head off to Nuke York City to rescue her and fight the rock star on his own turf: the stage.

I’ve been a huge fan of this movie since I saw it in the late 1980s, and I had never noticed that Catherine O’Hara plays Izzy’s aunt Edith, a grizzled Nuke Yorker who runs a tattoo parlor and helps the band while they’re in town. It features a smorgasbord of celebrity voices and musical appearances, including Cheap Trick and Debbie Harry as Omar and Angel’s band, Lou Reed and Izzy Pop as Mok; the dialogue voice talent is a little less well-known but stars Paul LeMat, Susan Roman, and Don Francks.

The story is a fun rock n’ roll romp about the rise and fall to stardom. The soundtrack definitely delivers on the magic and majesty of music, even when it’s not intentionally being used for occult purposes. Debbie Harry absolutely delivers with her performance, and it is easy to see why it would get Mok’s attention. The fantastical blend of magic and technology Mok uses for his sorcery ignites the imagination in ways that a more traditional story about a demonic summoning doesn’t accomplish.

The lingering aura of nuclear war is constantly emphasized throughout the movie, from the names of places to the smoggy and desolate settings the characters inhabit. Mutant creatures that evolved from waste are looked down upon by mainstream society, as illustrated by warnings and security measures at the venues visited during the film. In this respect, the movie is very dated, as the early 1980s were a time of such fear of nuclear war that we had “civil defense drills” against bombs rather than the “active shooter drills” of today.

The movie also saw pushback from Rolling Stones superstar Mick Jagger. Mok was originally supposed to be called “Mok Swagger” and was drawn to resemble the strutting singer with a dash of fellow musical collaborationist David Bowie thrown in. Mok is portrayed as being narcissistic and drunk on his own stardom, a portrait that Jagger didn’t seem to appreciate, even fictionally. He succeeded in having the character’s surname dropped, but otherwise, as he sings in the movie himself, “My name is Mok/thanks a lot.”

Rock n’ Rule may be a throwback to previous social trauma, but it’s still a worthwhile watch today, and I watch it every time I find it because it is just that much fun. It’s raunchy, with slapstick comedy and a thoughtful premise, and most importantly, great music that keeps you coming back to hear it again.

Check out this secret Catherine O’Hara gem, streaming free on Tubi.