Still Going Strong

When do you walk away?

That's the underlying question of a brilliant documentary I saw this weekend called ANVIL: The Story of ANVIL.

The movie follows a couple of 50 year-old guys who briefly tasted success as a heavy metal band back in the 80s. Twenty-five, thirty years later --ragged and worn -- they're still chasing the dream.

It's easy to dismiss their goofy personas and juvenile antics as a real-life version of Spinal Tap, but this movie is so much more.

The structure is tight with three distinct and compelling acts. The editing is deft. In particular, I enjoyed the sequence where drummer Robb Reiner (I know, right? But that's his real name.) gives us a tour of his original oil paintings. Best of all, however: director Sacha Gervasi manages to counter the over-the-top heavy metal aspect of the story with the gripping, human frustration of trying to break out and make it big. The banality of the day jobs, the thrill of going on tour, the inevitable disappointments followed by new hopes and new challenges. Gervasi captures the moments where these guys are not just stereotype hair-band rockers, but also the real, yearning people inside. One minute you're laughing at them, the next you're caught up in their very same dreams. And that's the real genius of the film. It would have been all too easy to make these characters balding, bare-chested dullards, and at the beginning of the movie, you certainly laugh at them that way. But these guys are so earnest and so passionate about their dream, you can't help but feel for them. Especially as someone who's pursuing his own labyrinthine path to fame and fortune, it really resonated with me. I've attached the trailer below. I'll say without hesitation that it's the best movie (documentary or otherwise) I've seen this year. Find it and see it. -Tom, who's headed back into the labyrinth.