Camp Rock

The DVD and Blu-ray of the film, titled Camp Rock: Extended Rock Star Edition, was released by Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment on August 19, 2008.[8] It was released in November in other countries, and on December 1 in the United Kingdom, only on DVD.[9] Both the DVD and Blu-ray release contains an extended ending, the music videos, sing-along and karaoke functions, a gallery and more bonus features.

Merchandise of the film is sold at Target, Claire's, and Limited Too. They include clothing (such as pajamas, T-shirts, and underwear), bags (tote bags, backpacks, etc.), bedding collection, toys, and dolls of the characters. Play Along Toys, so far, has only released dolls of Mitchie and Shane. On May 13, 2008, Disney published Camp Rock: The Junior Novel, by Lucy Ruggles, the novelization of the film. Target retail stores sell "special editions" of the novel, hardcover books that include photos.

Camp Rock premiered on Disney Channel in the United States on June 20, 2008, with 8.9 million viewers, being the second most viewed Disney Channel Original Movie at the time, only behind High School Musical 2 (2007).[10] Its June 21 showing on ABC had 3.47 million viewers, and its June 22 showing on ABC Family had 3.73 million viewers, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The DVD topped the national home video sales chart for the week ending August 24.[11] The movie's premiere in Canada became Family Channel's second-most-watched movie ever, also behind High School Musical, with 848,000 viewers.[12] Its Disney Channel Italy premiere received 1.14 million viewers in September.[13] According to Billboard the film attracted an audience of 146 million viewers in 160 nations and 30 languages.[14]

The film received moderate reviews from critics. On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a rating of 48% based on 21 reviews, with an average rating of 4.4/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Camp Rock wants to be the next High School Musical, but its forgettable songs and dull premise hold it back".[15] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 64 out of 100, based on 16 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[16]

Brian Lowry of Variety stated that "it's difficult not to grudgingly admire the marketing savvy with which Camp Rock was assembled".[17] New York Post critic Austin Smith called it a "really great movie, like a modern-day version of an old Judy Garland-Mickey Rooney picture" in which the kids "put on a show that improves the lives of all who see it".[18] Barry Garron of The Hollywood Reporter admired Matthew Diamond's "solid enough" direction and Demi Lovato's performance. He also said that with Camp Rock, "Disney plucks another fresh face off its deep bench of young talent".[19] Robert Lloyd of Los Angeles Times wrote that the film "isn't particularly good, but it's good at what it does", and called it "inauthentic".[20] USA Today's Robert Blanco called the film "simultaneously overdone and underproduced" and said that "it jerks its way from point to point without bothering to explain the characters' behavior or inject any life into its musical numbers". Entertainment Weekly's Gillian Flynn said "the strange and objectionable thing about the film's morality tale is that no one makes an outright decision to be brave or better", and called it "so rigidly formulated and unremarkable" that by the time the cast sings its finale, We Rock, "it's hard to agree".[21]

Following the critics' line of comparison to High School Musical, Jennifer Frey of The Washington Post said that Camp Rock's music is "in the same easy-to-memorize, dance-inspiring mode" as that of the previous franchise, "but not as catchy".[22] Daily News's David Hinckley agreed, saying that "the songs don't feel as fresh" and "the film is specifically designed to ride on the success of the previous one", but he praised its formula that "goes back to the animated Disney classics of decades past", and called it "catchy and fun, a rock-steady Disney hit". Hinckley also praised the talent and performance of leads Joe Jonas and Lovato.[23]

In 2016, Billboard's Maria Sherman named Camp Rock Lovato's best film to date, describing it as "something of a coming of age tale, one not only about believing in yourself, but accepting yourself".[24] USA Today added Camp Rock to the top ten best summer camp movies of all time.[25] Rebecca Alter of Vulture ranked the film as one of the best Disney Channel Original Movies of all time.[26]

After the great reception to the official premiere of Camp Rock, being the second most viewed Disney Channel Original Movie at the time, Disney confirmed a sequel to be produced in late spring 2009.[12] Lovato, the Jonas Brothers, Martin, Canals-Barrera, Fathers, and Stoner reprised their main roles. Daniel Kash, Matthew "Mdot" Finley, and Chloe Bridges joined the cast in the new film.[14] Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam premiered on the Disney Channel on September 3, 2010, reaching a total of 7.9 million viewers on its first broadcast, the most for a movie on cable television in the year.[27] The film was directed by Paul Hoen and written by Dan Berendsen, Karin Gist and Regina Hicks. It was shot in Toronto, Ontario, from September 3 to October 16, 2009, filming the scenes at the French River, Kilcoo Camp, The Kingbridge Centre, and Earl Bales Park.[28] It was the last sequel of a Disney Channel Original Movie, until Teen Beach 2, in 2015.

My Camp Rock, a singing competition based on Camp Rock, aired between 2009 and 2010. It had five international editions: a Scandinavian, Spanish, Benelux, French and British version, the original. It invited viewers to log online and make a video of themselves singing "This Is Me" and "We Rock" as a group, a duet or a solo. The competition was open to children aged 8 to 16. The best 8 entries were picked to participate in the TV show, and to attend a 4-day intensive Camp Rock-style singing and dancing workshop. They had the opportunity to demonstrate their musical talent to the panel of judges through a range of music and physical activities. In the Final Jam, the viewer vote decided the winner. The prize for the winner was to have their version of a song from the film professionally recorded and released along with a music video. The winner of the first British edition was Holly Hull, 14, from Camberley, Surrey.[29]