anvil the story of anvil Tagged Articles at Cinematical

Are members from the documentary branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences being paid to short list some films over others? That's what it sounds like director James Toback was alluding to when he spoke to the New York Times recently about how his buzzed-about documentary, Tyson, was left off the Academy's short list along with several other notable documentaries from the past year. Toback told the Times that at some point during the selection process he experienced something he puts "fully in the category of extortion", adding that he did not go along with it.

Speaking on behalf of the documentary branch -- which Toback refers to as "some tiny, dirty covert weirdly protective group" -- chairman (and filmmaker) Rob Epstein said, "I have no idea. It certainly hasn't come before me." Among some of the critically acclaimed docs snubbed this year are Michael Moore's Capitalism: A Love Story, the awesome Anvil! The Story of Anvil, and The September Issue. This year's documentary short list was narrowed down to 15 finalists from 89 possible contenders. So, yeah, obviously you're going to see some fantastic films miss the cut, and, subsequently, some pissed off filmmakers, but it's a pretty bold move for Toback to go and claim extortion, don't you think?

By now you've probably heard of Anvil, the Canadian heavy-metal band that's been thrashing away from 30 years without ever finding major success. A documentary, Anvil! The Story of Anvil, was a hit at Sundance last year and has finally opened theatrically to wide acclaim (including from Cinematical's James Rocchi, who also interviewed the director and producer). The movie, which is equal parts entertaining and inspiring, follows the band's ongoing attempts to hit it big, and now it looks like they're on their way: Next week, they'll finally appear on a late-night talk show. It's only Jimmy Kimmel Live, but still!

Lead singer Steve "Lips" Kudlow and drummer Robb Reiner, the childhood friends who started Anvil in the late 1970s, will join Kimmel on Thursday, May 14. They'll be on the couch with Kimmel, being interviewed rather than performing a song, which speaks to the kind of success they're having as the result of the documentary: People want them to succeed without actually wanting to listen to their music.

Tax day can be stressful -- trust me, I feel your pain -- so Indie Roundup is here to make you feel better with soothing news of the adventurous indie film community.

Touring. Rachel Goslins' acclaimed doc 'Bama Girl got underway on its so-called "Southern Circuit Tour" this week, barnstorming across the South at a variety of venues through April 24. The doc revolves around a woman who wants to become the first African-American Homecoming Queen at her university, despite the nefarious efforts of a secret society determined to keep the crown lily white. Jette Kernion called it "one of the most entertaining movies" she saw at SXSW last year. More information is available at the official site; Ms. Goslins is also blogging about her adventures.

Box Office. Over the weekend, two docs outdrew Hannah Montana on a per-screen basis. Mark Cowen's Magnificent Desolation: Walking on the Moon 3D, re-released in four IMAX theatres, took in $15,845 per screen, per Box Office Mojo. Produced and narrated by Tom Hanks, the 40-minute film was originally released in 2005. Sacha Gervasi's Cinematical-approved heavy metal doc Anvil! The Story of Anvil, pulled in $11,550 per-screen at three severely-rocking cinemas. The never-say-die original band members are terribly appealing; check out the trailer embedded below for evidence.

Deals. Two films have been acquired for distribution today, according to indieWIRE. Regent Releasing and Here Media picked up Robert Young's docudrama Eichmann and will release it theatrically in October. The film stars the generally terrific Thomas Kretschmann in the title role and Franka Potente as the wife of Eichmann's interrogator after Hitler's architect of "the final solution" was captured in Argentina.

After the jump: Today's other deal -- for The Horse Boy; plus news on the Atlanta and New York film fests.

Welcome back to the Indie Spotlight, in which we list the new limited-release films being released today. Keep an eye out for when they come to your local art house or Netflix queue.

We only have three new ones this week, which should leave you plenty of time for the Janna Fontana movie.

• Anvil! The Story of Anvil (pictured) was one of the success stories at Sundance in 2008, where it played in one of the lower-profile sections and sort of came from nowhere to be a much-buzzed-about hit. It's about a Canadian heavy metal band that has been together for 30 years without ever quite hitting the bigtime. You will think it is a mockumentary, but no, it's real, and the story is inspiring, hilarious, and bizarre. Cinematical's James Rocchi loved it (he even got quoted on the poster!), calling it "a hymn to the human spirit, played loud in power chords." And hey, check out that 98% positive rating at Rotten Tomatoes! It's just playing in New York and Los Angeles for now, but just wait, it'll make the rounds.

• The Mysteries of Pittsburgh is based on beloved author Michael Chabon's first novel, a coming-of-age story adapted and directed by the guy who directed Dodgeball. (Uh-oh.) If Anvil was one of the success stories at Sundance 2008, this was one of the major disappointments. Cinematical's Scott Weinberg reviewed it then, saying it's "such an inert, episodic, and familiar piece of very typical festival fare. It's as if Mr. Thurber watched six Sundance films at random, and then just copied his favorite scenes from each one." The consensus at Rotten Tomatoes is dismal, too: only 11% of the reviews are positive. Playing in New York, L.A., San Francisco, Chicago, Boston, and Minneapolis.

By James Rocchi (reposted from Sundance 2008)

Better to reign in hell than serve in heaven. -- John Milton, Paradise Lost

I'd rather be a king below than a servant above. -- Anvil, '666'

... Which is all well and good, but what about serving in hell? Anvil! The Story of Anvil is not just better than you'd think that a documentary about a 30-year-old Canadian metal band led by two lifelong friends in their 50's would be. It's better than most music documentaries. It's better than most documentaries, period. I am about as metal as your aunt, and I was spellbound by Anvil! The Story of Anvil -- laughing, yes, but also inspired to think and feel, literally moved to the edge of tears by the complicated-simple, stupid-smart, goofy-serious story that it tells thanks to Sascha Gervasi's inspired and impressive direction. Anvil! The Story of Anvil is a documentary about a metal band, sure. And The Catcher in the Rye's about baseball.

Robb Reiner (drums) and Steve "Lips" Kudlow (guitar, vocals) met at 14 near Toronto; they formed a band. Anvil played heavy metal -- loud, fast -- and were both ahead of their time and behind the curve. They paved the way for bands like Slayer, Megadeth, Anthrax and Metallica (Scott Ian of Anthrax, Lars Ulrich of Metallica and Lemmy from Motorhead appear briefly to either endorse Anvil's music or character), but they watched as the bands they inspired went on to sell millions of records as Ulrich points out, "I don't know if it was an isolationist thing, because of the Canadian element. ..." Singing about being " ... from the land of the ice and snow ..." worked out remarkably well for Led Zeppelin; actually being from a land of ice and snow may have hurt Anvil's chances.

Drag Me to Hell
Sam Raimi has a new horror movie? How can this not be a good thing? Yes, he's been directing the adventures of Spider-Man in recent years (and really should have stopped before the third installment), but Raimi's first film was the horror classic The Evil Dead, and The Evil Dead 2 was one of the few sequels to improve upon the original. The plot for Drag Me To Hell is fueled by that old horror movie chestnut, the gypsy curse. When a young bank officer refuses to give a payment extension to an old woman, she is soon being stalked by a demonic entity which, as the title says, ultimately wants to take her to hell for all eternity. This one hits on May 29th.

The Orphan
Here's the latest entry in the long running "creepy little kid" sub-genre of horror, and it reminds me quite a bit of 2007's Joshua. A seemingly angelic child is adopted by a loving family but things take a dark turn when bad things start happening to anyone who wrongs the newest addition to the family. Nothing too original here, but it could be good for a few scares. No release info for this one yet, in fact it's not even listed on IMDB.

For the third year in a row, Sundance is partnering up with the Brooklyn Academy of Music to present the "Sundance Institute at BAM" series, where flicks from this year's film festival will play for New York audiences May 29-June 8. It's just like going to Sundance, only without the snow and ice. Oh, and Brooklyn is actually big enough to handle large crowds. So maybe it's nothing like going to Sundance, except for the movies.

The movies -- 22 features and 36 shorts -- include several must-see titles, some of which have not played anywhere yet except for Sundance. Hot-buzz documentary American Teen (pictured) is on the schedule (complete with a prom-themed BAM party!), as is the soldier drama American Son. Anvil! The Story of Anvil was one of the most popular films at this year's fest, and the heavy metal band featured in it will perform live at BAM. There's the Chuck Palahniuk adaptation Choke, Stacy Peralta's L.A. gang doc Made in America, the South American cannibalism doc Stranded, and award-winning documentaries Trouble the Water and Man on Wire. If you've been paying attention to the indie/film-fest scene this year, you've probably heard of some of these, so it's pretty cool that the Sundance/BAM partnership will give wider audiences a chance to see them.

Tickets for the "Sundance Institute at BAM" series go on sale to BAM members on April 21, and the general public on April 26. Neither Sundance nor BAM has the complete info on its website yet, but here's the BAM page to keep your eye on.