LOS ANGELES — Everyone who grew up in the "be kind, rewind" era and attended the film school of the masses — their neighborhood Blockbuster — has a story about roaming the store in search of the titles that left a lasting impression on their cinematic development: "Raging Bull," "E.T.," "Do the Right Thing." Vanessa Ramos, the creator and showrunner of Netflix's comedic ode to the movie rental franchise, could list what those films were for her if she thought about it long enough.
Or she could light up telling you about the time she got her kiddie hands on "Rock-a-Doodle."
"There was a Blockbuster by my house and on Fridays, once my dad got home from work, we would go as a family and we would pick three movies," Ramos says, recalling the 1991 animated musical comedy about an Elvis Presley-like barnyard rooster. "My brother and I got to pick one that we had to both agree on, but we never agreed on anything except for this movie called 'Rock-a-Doodle' that was very clearly based on Elvis, but also a small child's hallucination at the end. There were other Blockbuster memories, of course, but it's the one that sticks out — 'Rock-a-Doodle.' Childhood at its best."
