Anvil: The Story of Anvil (2008)

Since 1978, Anvil has become one of heavy metal's most influential yet commercially unsuccessful acts. In 2006, after a fledging European tour Anvil sets out to record their thirteenth album and continue to follow their dreams.

Director:

Sacha Gervasi

Stars:

Scott Ian, Steve 'Lips' Kudlow, Robb Reiner

20 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Scott Ian	...	Himself - Rhythm Guitarist, Anthrax
Lemmy	...	Himself - Bassist, Motörhead
Malcolm Dome	...	Himself - Journalist, Metal Hammer Magazine
Lars Ulrich	...	Himself - Drummer, Metallica
Slash	...	Himself - Guitarist
Tom Araya	...	Himself - Bassist, Slayer
John Zazula	...	Himself - Manager of Metallica, Anthrax, Anvil (as Jon Zazula)
Steve 'Lips' Kudlow	...	Himself - Singer, Lead Guitarist, Anvil
Robb Reiner	...	Himself - Drummer, Anvil
Cut Loose	...	Himself - Anvil Fan
Mad Dog	...	Himself - Anvil Fan
Gary Greenblatt	...	Himself - Original Bassist, Anvil
Toby Kudlow	...	Herself - Steve 'Lips' Kudlow's Mother
Jane Reiner	...	Herself - Robb Reiner's Wife
Andrea Reiner	...	Herself - Robb Reiner's Sister (as Droid Reiner)

Storyline

At 14, best friends Robb Reiner and Lips made a pact to rock together forever. Their band, Anvil, hailed as the "demi-gods of Canadian metal, " influenced a musical generation that includes Metallica, Slayer, and Anthrax, despite never hitting the big time. Following a calamitous European tour, Lips and Robb, now in their fifties, set off to record their 13th album in one last attempt to fulfill their boyhood dreams.

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Plot Keywords:

canadian | repetition in title | heavy metal | friendship between men | friendship | 

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Taglines:

At fourteen, they made a pact to rock together forever. They meant it.

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Genres:

Documentary | Biography | Music

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [France]

Country:

Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 February 2009 (UK)

Also Known As:

Anvil!

Filming Locations:

Scarborough, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$34,651 (USA) (10 April 2009)

Gross:

$666,659 (USA) (18 September 2009)

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

80 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

Himself - Drummer, Anvil: I can answer that in one word... two words... three words: we haven't got good management.

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Connections

Featured in The Rotten Tomatoes Show: The Best of Music in the Movies (2010)

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Soundtracks

"Mothra"
Written by Steve 'Lips' Kudlow (as Kudlow), Robb Reiner (as Reiner), Allison,
Dickson, Ross
Performed by Anvil
Courtesy of Unidisc Music Inc.

User Reviews

When All Is Said and Done...

What a great documentary. By turns hilarious, heartbreaking, warm, touching, head- scratching, and full of more edge of your seat suspense than any 10 Hollywood thrillers. It's been called the "real life Spinal Tap," and these metalheads surely do walk the fine line between genius and stupid, but it's got so much more heart and humanity than that. It reminded me more of "American Movie," another great documentary about the unstoppable creative urge and the do-it-yourself-or-die-trying spirit. Lips and Robbo, the two fiftysomething never-say-never-again rockers at the heart of the film, are such fascinating, lovable characters, half heroes, half putzes, partly delusional, yet partly triumphant too. They're good at what they do, they know it and love it and can't stop doing it, even though the music industry passed them over a long, long time ago. They caught all the bad breaks they possibly could, but they didn't let that stop them. As the movie follows them on an agonizing (and yet hilarious) European tour, their attempts to get anyone in the record industry interested in their 13th LP, and an out-of-nowhere gig in Japan, you root for them and fret for them more than any characters in any recent film. That's because, of course, this isn't a film about rock n roll, or about these two guys even -- it really is one of those films that's about all of us, our fears and dreams, our success and failures, our genius moments and our putzy ones. No kidding, not just one of the best docs I've seen in recent years, but one of the mot touching and affecting movies, period.