Review of Anvil! The Story of Anvil (2008) by Marc F — 30 Jun 2009

In a world where the economy is completely fucked, where the polar icecaps are starting to melt, car companies are bribing consumers into buying their cars, where paedophiles apparently work in schools or every day we are overwhelmed by the almost constant threat that if some pig disease doesnâ??t kill us then the terrorists will, itâ??s hard to remain positive.

Having watched Anvil: The Story of Anvil, I know everything is going to be just fine.

The world is in a great depression, we canâ??t deny it; both literally and figuratively. All happiness in the world is replaced by pessimism and cynicism â?? itâ??s not only an economical depression, but a human depression as well. Nothing is going right for anybody at the minute and for the most part everybody is either miserable or looking to find a reason to be miserable, but after watching Anvil: The Story of Anvil, one has to admire the courage and determination of the enduring human spirit.

What is this film about? Itâ??s about a struggling, aging heavy metal band unwilling to contemporise, trying to make it in a musical world where the landscape changes in an instant. Have you ever heard of Anvil or do you even like Heavy Metal? Probably not, but thatâ??s not the point. The point is: we have to carry on doing what we do â?? not because it has to make sense but because itâ??s our duty on earth to fill the 78 years we have with something worthwhile, so that when we die, we die knowing that we have done something different.

In the Western world we have 78 years if weâ??re lucky â?? a film like Anvil: The Story of Anvil tells us that we canâ??t afford to sit around for those 78 years being miserable, or being depressed, or being cynical and pessimistic. It teaches us that we need to do something, anything, and that, as a species, we have to endure and face up to all of the problems that we encounter.

Itâ??s a deeply human and honest film that goes into the most unlikely of places to find that tiny bit of light we all need to survive in a world full of darkness. Itâ??s a film that should tap you on the shoulder, smile at you, and remind you that everything is going to be all right.