This is Spinal Tap (1984)

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ½

This is Spinal Tap (1984) – R. Reiner

In an effort to avert my gaze from the horrors of world events and localized cold and flu symptoms, I turned again to one of the few funny comedies of recent decades (and possibly Rob Reiner’s last great movie).  Spinal Tap is Michael McKean, Christopher Guest, and Harry Shearer and together with Reiner (as the erstwhile “rockumentary” maker) and a cast of soon-to-be famous players in bit parts, they riff endlessly on the idea of the heavy metal band (and rock band in general) as it emerged in the 70’s and 80’s.  Even watched for the nth time, the dialogue and episodes depicted here are of such sublime ridiculousness that no other mockumentary can compare (though Guest made a noble effort in the 1990s). Everyone is clearly having fun being as stupid as possible – and it’s funny (not stupid) for the most part.  Even the casual music fan can catch the loving winks at bands that transformed themselves from blues to psychedelia to metal across too-long careers, along with the lip-synched videos, bloated tours, meddling girlfriends, and general chaos and calamity that seemed to follow their egos across time and space.  Expect low budget and accept no substitute (I haven’t bothered to see any of the sequelia).