In the early seventies, two teenagers; Steve “Lips” Kudlow and Robb Reiner met, became friends and started a band that would be destined for great success…Anvil. They just didn’t realize it would take three decades to do so. With great dedication and a lot of hard work, Anvil began developing a following and becoming more and more successful straight through the eighties, including releasing one of the heaviest albums in Heavy Metal;  “Metal On Metal” which in turn influenced a whole generation of bands including Anthrax and Metallica. The band reached the height of their career by performing in Japan with the Scorpions, Whitesnake and Bon Jovi. All of the bands went on to sell millions of records except Anvil which somehow fell through the cracks of insignificance. 

With their heads held high and never loosing sight of their goal to be successful, the core of the band; “Lips” and Reiner continued on with several lineup changes releasing album after album up until 2004’s “Back To Basics.” The band was then approached by long time friend and fan, Sacha Gervasi about documenting their lives in the present. The film; “Anvil: The story of Anvil” takes the viewer on a journey with the band in search of regaining their fame, interviews from some of music’s elite, the drama of everyday life while working everyday jobs, making a new record with producer Chris Tsangarides who produced albums for Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, Mountain and Thin Lizzy and a European tour in which everything that could have went wrong…did! 

But, throughout all of the struggles they endured, both personally and professionally, Reiner and Kudlow remained steadfast and even through difficult times…stayed positive. There is a scene in the movie where Kudlow is driving down the street after returning from the European tour and he says; “The tour sucked. We didn’t get paid…but at least we were on tour in Europe!” That’s the kind of heart these men have. The film shows the hardships the families endure and the love for all involved…which captures the heart of the film.

 

This film takes the viewer on an emotional roller-coaster with the extreme highs and very depressing lows that the band goes through in this two year period 2005-2007. There is a multitude of reasons why this movie is blowing up all over but there was a special one for my screening. Anvil themselves were at the theater including bassist Glenn Five and it was really cool to see the band inside the room watching the reactions from the audience while the movie played. After the feature, they played several of their songs, inside the theater (yes, right in front of the silver screen). The band ran through a set that included; “This Is Thirteen” “666”, “White Rhino” (including a drum solo) and “Metal On Metal.” This whole concept reminded me of how Meat Loaf and Jim Steinman used to perform for record executives to win them over instead of sending in demos for “Bat Out Of Hell.”  It’s just something that you have to experience in person. 

I asked Reiner how he felt about the movie getting rave reviews and their popularity blowing up again and he replied “We’re an over-night sensation…just thirty years in the making!”

 

Please visit the “Showin Love For T.E.N.”  link for exclusive photos of the band.