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Anvil!: The Story of Anvil (Sacha Gervasi, 2008)
Powerful and humorous film about how people who have grown up together can be in an awesome band for over 35 years and still have almost nobody else know about it. This is a serious film, not a mockumentary; of course, it's sometimes unclear if any of it was staged for the camera, but I'll cut this film more slack than many in that regard and just say that it's basically unadulterated truth. The film begins with many of heavy metal's demigods extolling the awesomeness of Canada's metal monster band Anvil and their debut album, Metal on Metal which influenced them. In fact, the opening shots at an early 1980s Japanese metal festival prove that Anvil kicks all the other bands of their time's asses, and we're talking about groups such as Metallica, Slayer and Anthrax. So, what happened to Anvil? They kept touring and putting out low-budget albums but, except for a small rabid fanbase, they faded into obscurity and spent most of the last 25 years doing day jobs involving delivering food and construction work. The two original members of Anvil's four-man lineup who are still around in the 2000s are best friends, lead guitar/vocalist Steve "Lips" Kudlow and drummer extraordinaire Robb Reiner (yes, that's his name). They decide to trust an internet fan to get them a European tour in the 2000s, and although it starts out OK, it turns into a nightmare.
Basically, Anvil is a band which has suffered from crappy management its entire existence. The band members have wives, kids, brothers, sisters, etc., who all try to help them out but they see them more as little kids who never grew up and still want to "play", trying to see their dream come true, even if it hasn't for most of their lives. Of course, the viewer is pulling for the band because they seem just like somebody in your own family and you can see their talent (even if certain styles have passed them by). The thing about this movie which really hits home to me is when Reiner and Lips get into fights over things which really have nothing to do with each other, but only occur because the other one is that person's best friend and actually has more history with that person than even their wives and kids. I can total relate to that because I have an unmarried "best" friend who's alienated from his siblings and gets along well with his casual friends, but he often gets pissed off at me just because I'm the person who talks to him about things which piss him off. I keep trying to get him to relax and stay in the moment, but he wants to get mad at others and the way he thinks his life turned out and then he goes off, seemingly blaming me for whatever lousy path his life takes. I still love him though because he's family, and you know how sometimes family are the hardest to love because they take so much for granted? (Just because they know that you'll usually take it?) Well, this flick displays this kind of relationship better than most fictional films I've ever seen. And besides that, it has what I'd call a happy ending
. So rock on Anvil, and Peace to people who can never seem to find it.
Powerful and humorous film about how people who have grown up together can be in an awesome band for over 35 years and still have almost nobody else know about it. This is a serious film, not a mockumentary; of course, it's sometimes unclear if any of it was staged for the camera, but I'll cut this film more slack than many in that regard and just say that it's basically unadulterated truth. The film begins with many of heavy metal's demigods extolling the awesomeness of Canada's metal monster band Anvil and their debut album, Metal on Metal which influenced them. In fact, the opening shots at an early 1980s Japanese metal festival prove that Anvil kicks all the other bands of their time's asses, and we're talking about groups such as Metallica, Slayer and Anthrax. So, what happened to Anvil? They kept touring and putting out low-budget albums but, except for a small rabid fanbase, they faded into obscurity and spent most of the last 25 years doing day jobs involving delivering food and construction work. The two original members of Anvil's four-man lineup who are still around in the 2000s are best friends, lead guitar/vocalist Steve "Lips" Kudlow and drummer extraordinaire Robb Reiner (yes, that's his name). They decide to trust an internet fan to get them a European tour in the 2000s, and although it starts out OK, it turns into a nightmare.
Basically, Anvil is a band which has suffered from crappy management its entire existence. The band members have wives, kids, brothers, sisters, etc., who all try to help them out but they see them more as little kids who never grew up and still want to "play", trying to see their dream come true, even if it hasn't for most of their lives. Of course, the viewer is pulling for the band because they seem just like somebody in your own family and you can see their talent (even if certain styles have passed them by). The thing about this movie which really hits home to me is when Reiner and Lips get into fights over things which really have nothing to do with each other, but only occur because the other one is that person's best friend and actually has more history with that person than even their wives and kids. I can total relate to that because I have an unmarried "best" friend who's alienated from his siblings and gets along well with his casual friends, but he often gets pissed off at me just because I'm the person who talks to him about things which piss him off. I keep trying to get him to relax and stay in the moment, but he wants to get mad at others and the way he thinks his life turned out and then he goes off, seemingly blaming me for whatever lousy path his life takes. I still love him though because he's family, and you know how sometimes family are the hardest to love because they take so much for granted? (Just because they know that you'll usually take it?) Well, this flick displays this kind of relationship better than most fictional films I've ever seen. And besides that, it has what I'd call a happy ending
. So rock on Anvil, and Peace to people who can never seem to find it.