Anvil! The Story of Anvil

Film review from The Movie Snob

Anvil! The Story of Anvil (B-). This is a documentary about a Canadian heavy-metal band called Anvil. If I remember right, it had a brief moment of notoriety when it played at some mammoth concert in Japan with the likes of The Scorpions and Bon Jovi in around 1983. Twenty-five years and twelve albums later, Anvil still toils in obscurity. Its core duo are Steve "Lips" Kudlow, who plays the guitar and is the lead singer, and Robb Reiner, the drummer. Lips in particular still cherishes the dream of making it big, even though he's married and has a little boy and has an unglamorous day job with a catering service. Robb, who's also married, seems a little more realistic and level-headed, but that may just be because he's quieter than the manic Lips. It does play a lot like This Is Spinal Tap, but there is some pathos to it because Lips so desperately wants to make a hit record and go on the big tour. I had a little bit of a hard time warming up to the movie because I really felt sorry for him.