BBC iPlayer: Anvil! The Story Of Anvil (2008)

Words: Saam Das

'Anvil! The Story Of Anvil' (2008)

Director: Sacha Gervasi



SYNOPSIS:"At 14, Toronto school friends Steve 'Lips' Kudlow and Robb Reiner made a pact to rock together forever. Their band Anvil went on to become the 'demi-gods of Canadian metal', releasing 1982's Metal on Metal, which influenced a musical generation including Metallica, Slayer and Anthrax.

All those bands went on to sell millions of records but Anvil's career would take a different path - straight into obscurity. But Lips and Robb never gave up on their childhood dream and kept rocking, always believing that one day Anvil would taste the success that had so long eluded them.

The film follows Lips and Robb, now in their 50s, as they gear up to record their thirteenth album, This is Thirteen. Coping with increasingly impatient families, crippling mortgages and the effects of old age, they know this is their last chance to really make it." (bbc.co.uk)

I always find it fascinating to discover what old popstars/rockstars are upto once the dream is over. The ridiculously hot bassist from 90s girl band Hepburn becoming a police constable was particularly enlightening.

Anvil, however, have hung onto their aspirations and Sacha Gervasi's documentary covers their attempts at trying to "make it" thirty years after their initial prominence. While I didn't find it quite as affecting and engaging as most (98% on Rotten Tomatoes, I am glad it raised their profile and afforded them minor success, which their continued dedication merited. It's been quite a journey and one that 'Anvil! The Story Of Anvil' helps bare, warts and all.

WATCH 'Anvil! The Story Of Anvil' until 9:19pm, Thursday 22nd July 2010.