Review: ‘Anvil! The Story of Anvil’

The inspiring new documentary ANVIL! THE STORY OF ANVIL follows a has-been heavy metal band desperate for a comeback as they are plagued by disinterested producers, depressing concert attendance, infighting and general confusion. I was a bit tired of hearing about the comparisons between ANVIL! THE STORY OF ANVIL and THIS IS SPINAL TAP even before I saw this movie. At this point any nonfiction film about rock ‘n’ roll will draw comparison’s with Rob Reiner’s 1983 classic but the parallels here are so astonishing (right down to the goofy bombast of the music itself) that I wonder how much ANVIL: THE STORY OF ANVIL’s director Sacha Gervasi may have manipulated his subjects (dragging the band to visit Stonehenge for example) so he could market his film as “The real life SPINAL TAP!†�

That said, ANVIL! THE STORY OF ANVIL is a tremendously entertaining and often hilarious study of perseverance that focuses on two men who, after decades of disappointment, refuse to accept their musical mortality. Singer/guitarist Steve “Lips” Kudlow and drummer Robb Reiner (!) were pioneers of Heavy Metal as founding members of the Canadian rock band Anvil. Despite world tours in the early 80s and at least one influential album, “Metal on Metal†�, major success eluded the longtime best friends while similar rockers went on to fame and fortune. The film introduces them today as 50-ish long-hairs, still living in Canada with their families, working menial day jobs and performing the occasional sports-bar gig at night. But these two remaining original Anvil members refuse to abandon their dreams of a return to rock-stardom. Offered a European tour facilitated by a newer member’s girlfriend/promoter, Kudlow and Reiner are excited to hit the road to seek their much-needed comeback. It’s this first half of ANVIL! that will look most familiar to Spinal Tap fans as the frustrated band misses trains, gets lost, can’t get paid, and endure the tour’s climax at a “Monsters of Rock” show in Romania that draws a “crowd†� of 126 (Reiner summarizes the problems with the great line: “Three words: We haven’t got good management.”). Back in Canada, Kudlow enlists famed metal producer Chris Tsangarides, who’d produced the band at their peak 25 years earlier. Tsangarides wants to produce Anvil’s 13th album, the only catch being that Kudlow and Reiner will have to pay for it themselves!

Unlike the Spinal Tap boys, Kudlow and Reiner are such likable guys you can’t help but root for their success and admire their determination to give it all one last shot. Kudlow, a dedicated family man, refuses to become bitter and remains an outspoken eternal optimist despite the humiliations thrown at him. At times Kudlow seems a bit too self-aware of the camera and grandstands dramatically such as in a scene where he threatens bodily harm to a pub owner who can’t pay him. The more meditative Reiner finds his outlet in painting and his presentation of “Turd in Toilet Bowl†� still-life is sidesplitting. Director Gervasi does a great job establishing Anvil’s historical context by interviewing members of better-known bands such as Guns N Roses, Metallica and Judas Priest, who fondly cite Anvil’s substantial influence on their own music and the overall metal scene. Despite Anvil’s modern failure’s, Gervasi is not here to condescend or portray these men as fools. Gervasi seems impressed with the camaraderie and good will shared between these two headbangers who find it hard to understand that no one seems to appreciate the huge talent that they believe they still possess. ANVIL! THE STORY OF ANVIL presents a revealing and realistic look at the music industry and the problems of keeping faith in one’s self despite overwhelming obstacles. It’s a great documentary and, I suspect will be just the boost the band needs at this point in their careers.

[Overall: 4.5 out of 5 stars]