Review of Anvil! The Story of Anvil (2008) by Eleanor O — 29 Sep 2010

The term â??bro-manceâ?? is pretty common in mainstream pop-culture these days, but the story shown in this doco, about the 30+ year career and mateship of Anvil founding band members, Robb Reiner and Steve â??Lipsâ?? Kudlow, is the real deal. As well is the raw experience shown of the pitfalls of being a band struggling to get a foot in the door of a constantly deflating music industry. While it dubiously extracts emotion from itâ??s audience occasionally manipulatively (what documentary doesnâ??t to some degree?), it remains an excellent fly on the wall look at friendship, passion and of course, rock n roll.

It tends to only focus on present day and the "heyday" (early 80's) of the band - making it less a thorough history and more a "Where are they now?" senario, which also means it manages to barely scrape into feature length. The film still remains effectively made and very engrossing. Anvil! The Story of Anvil is highly recommended.