Before “Happy Gilmore” and “Billy Madison,” Adam Sandler starred in a few lesser known films, one of these being the 1994 rock ‘n’ roll comedy “Airheads.” The film features an ensemble cast and did not do well at the box office. Surprisingly, it brought in a little over half of the original budget domestically.

The film is about a struggling hair metal band called The Lone Rangers on the Los Angeles strip. They are fronted by the lead singer Chazz, played by Brendan Fraser, who is desperate to make it big and will do anything to help their situation. Chazz becomes even more determined after his longtime girlfriend kicks him out of their apartment. While hanging out at The Whisky, the band sees another local band, The Sons of Thunder, get a record deal after having their song played on the radio, the band sets out to do the same thing. After things do not go according to plan at the record station, The Lone Rangers decide to hold the place hostage. The only catch is, the station’s employees have no idea that their “weapons” are actually squirt guns filled with hot sauce.

The Lone Rangers have a difficult time trying to play their song. In the process, their tape actually catches fire from cigarette ashes. When the police show up outside the station, the antics amp up. Since it technically is a hostage situation, their list of demands gets strange. At one point they ask for a football helmet filled with cottage cheese. Their reasoning behind it? To ask for strange things so they may plead insanity later.

The band is played by Fraser, Sandler and Steve Buscemi. Other stars in the film include Chris Farley, Ernie Hudson, Judd Nelson, David Arquette, and the late Harold Ramis. Mike Judge even makes a voice appearance as voicing Beavis and Butt-head. With an all star cast like that, it is a mystery why the film did not do as well.

Since the film is about a struggling band, there is a lot of music featured in it. The shock rock group White Zombie, lead by Rob Zombie, makes an appearance performing at a club. Lemmy Kilmister from Motorhead makes a non musical appearance as a member of a crowd. The fictional band, The Sons of Thunder, featured in the film is played by the actual band Galactic Cowboys. The song “Degenerated,” performed by The Lone Rangers, was recorded by the punk band Reagan Youth.

The film is one of the best in Sandler’s as well as Fraser’s catalogs. The band’s decision making process is entertaining to watch to say the least. In a real world sense, the film is interesting in that the hair metal scene was on a severe decline in the early ’90s. In the film, Chazz distastefully acknowledges that Seattle’s music scene, known as grunge, is on the rise. For fans of rock music, this film is absolute must see. However, it will be enjoyed by regular fans of comedy films.