Rating: NR
Genre:
Music [nf]
Theatrical Release: 04/10/2009(USA
Release Date: 10/06/2009
SubTitles: French
Dubbed: English
Sound: DD5.1/DD2
Run Time: 80 Minutes
Distributor/Studio: VH1 Classics
In 1981, Canadian
heavy metal band
Anvil released their first album,
Hard 'n' Heavy, which earned them a potent reputation among discerning headbangers and established them as one of the pioneering acts of the
speed metal movement.
Anvil had a loyal following in their native Canada and they shared stages with some of the biggest names in heavy rock, but the lucky break that would have elevated them to real stardom never came, and legal troubles helped to derail the group's career in the mid-'80s. Years later, the likes of
Metallica and
Slayer would cite
Anvil as a key influence, but lead vocalist
Steve "Lips" Kudlow and drummer
Robb Reiner struggled to keep the band alive, recording new material for tiny independent labels and trying to organize club tours as they juggled day jobs, families, and adult responsibilities.
Documentary filmmaker
Sacha Gervasi follows
Kudlow and
Reiner as they struggle to keep their ambitions alive despite 35 years of missing the brass ring in
Anvil! The True Story of Anvil, which paints a sympathetic but warts-and-all portrait of the unexpected consequences of the
rock & roll dream.
Anvil! received its American premiere at the
2008 Sundance Film Festival.
~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
;)
