Review of Anvil! The Story of Anvil (2008) by Joe B — 27 Jun 2009

Passionate rockumentary about Anvil, a Canadian heavy metal band who found success and fame in the early 1980s but quickly dropped off the radar. Now the founder members, Steve "Lips" Kudlow, guitarist and singer, and Robb Reiner, drummer, are stuck in dead-end day jobs while occasionally hitting the road to play small gigs in tiny venues, to a select and dwindling group of die-hard fans.

Kudlow and Reiner make quite the cinematic odd couple- Kudlow is emotional and animated, and prone to the occasional delusion of grandeur, while Reiner is quiet and deadpan, yet displays fierce loyalty to his bandmate.

Comparisons to Spinal Tap abound- the band embark on a disastrous European tour that's full of tragicomic Tap-isms (there's even a scene where they visit Stonehenge)- but to pass "Anvil" off as a mere comedy about a bunch of delusional headbangers is to do it a great disservice.

It's quite a touching film, especially in the second half, where you really get a sense that Kudlow and Reiner are together forever, come what may. They're not doing it for the money or the fame- they're doing it because they love it, and you've got to admire that level of commitment and dedication, even when everyone around them is convinced that they're doomed to failure.

Validation does come at the end, when the band perform in front of a festival audience in Japan- and of course in what's happened after the film, with Anvil now being booked for festival dates across Europe, including a stint with AC/DC on their North American tour.

Beyond the music, "Anvil" touches on a number of universal themes: friendship in the face of adversity, optimism in the face of overwhelming odds, hope, faith and the need to follow one's dream.

Simply put, you don't need to have 13 rings through your nose or wear black leather to enjoy this one- just remember to turn it up to 11!