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This Is Spinal Tap

7.4R

MovieComedy, Music19841h 22m

Prepare to crank those amps up to eleven.

"This Is Spinal Tap" shines a light on the self-contained universe of a metal band struggling to get back on the charts, including everything from its complicated history of ups and downs, gold albums, name changes and undersold concert dates, along with the full host of requisite groupies, promoters, hangers-on and historians, sessions, release events and those special behind-the-scenes moments that keep it all real.

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This Is Spinal Tap poster

"This Is Spinal Tap" shines a light on the self-contained universe of a metal band struggling to get back on the charts, including everything from its complicated history of ups and downs, gold albums, name changes and undersold concert dates, along with the full host of requisite groupies, promoters, hangers-on and historians, sessions, release events and those special behind-the-scenes moments that keep it all real.

Directed by
Rob Reiner
Written by
Rob Reiner, Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, Harry Shearer
Genres
Comedy, Music
Released
March 2, 1984
Runtime
1h 22m
Status
Released
Language
English
Countries
United States of America
Studios
Spinal Tap Prod., Embassy Films Associates, Embassy Pictures
Budget
$2,500,000
Box office
$6,051,884
  • Christopher GuestNigel Tufnel
  • Michael McKeanDavid St. Hubbins
  • Harry ShearerDerek Smalls
  • Rob ReinerMarty DiBergi
  • June ChadwickJeanine Pettibone
  • Tony HendraIan Faith
  • Bruno KirbyTommy Pischedda
  • Ed Begley Jr.John 'Stumpy' Pepys
  • Paul BenedictTucker 'Smitty' Brown
  • Zane BuzbyRolling Stone Reporter
  • Billy CrystalMorty the Mime
  • Howard HessemanTerry Ladd
  • Patrick MacneeSir Denis Eton-Hogg
  • Paul ShafferArtie Fufkin
  • Fred WillardLt. Hookstratten
  • R.J. ParnellMick Shrimpton
  • DDavid KaffViv Savage
  • Fran DrescherBobbi Flekman
  • Joyce HyserBelinda
  • Victory Tischler-BlueCindy

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  • Andre Wilfred Sanders★ 3July 29, 2023

    Am I the only one getting bored or not? It's probably because I don't like that loud noise

  • CinemaSerf★ 7February 2, 2024
    So the legendary British rockers "Spinal Tap" are on the comeback trail. After a dry spell in the USA, they determine to take their provocative new album and their film-faking fan "Marty" (Rob Reiner) and re-establish themselves as superstars. "Marty" has access to all aspects of their activities as he makes the ultimate fly-on-the-wall documentary depicting the ups and downs, warts and all, of this band of musicians…Read more

    So the legendary British rockers "Spinal Tap" are on the comeback trail. After a dry spell in the USA, they determine to take their provocative new album and their film-faking fan "Marty" (Rob Reiner) and re-establish themselves as superstars. "Marty" has access to all aspects of their activities as he makes the ultimate fly-on-the-wall documentary depicting the ups and downs, warts and all, of this band of musicians who epitomise just about everything good, bad and excessive in the industry at which this film takes an entertaining swipe. Interspersed with some decently staged rock numbers that could easily have been seen on MTV, we are exposed to the extremes of venality and avarice, some completely bonkers lyrics and their gradual realisation that the grand stadium days are maybe long gone, now. The bickering always stays on the amiable side of toxic, but squabbles about their racy album cover being banned in Walmart, their shrinking appeal narrowed now to just to stoned-out students and their own peccadilloes deliver an enjoyably authentic looking and frequently quite funnily written analysis of life on the downward side of the showbiz mountain - and it's quite scathing of those who make a living out of it with little or no talent but a solid belief in what they see in the mirror. This is British sarcasm and irony at it's cinematic best, disguised in a faux environment that even now, after forty years, is still often laugh out loud.

  • Filipe Manuel Neto★ 6March 5, 2024
    **Interesting, remarkable for its subgenre, credible… but I didn't find it funny.** I'm not a specific admirer of mockumentaries, but I recognize their value if they're funny. The film reports on the tour of a British rock band called Spinal Tap, and shows the enormous difficulties and crazy things they carry out on and off the stage. It's supposed to be a comedy... but, to be honest, it didn't make me laugh. I…
Part of a collectionThis Is Spinal Tap CollectionFilm 1 of 2Also in this collection: Spinal Tap II: The End ContinuesView the collection
Read more

**Interesting, remarkable for its subgenre, credible… but I didn't find it funny.** I'm not a specific admirer of mockumentaries, but I recognize their value if they're funny. The film reports on the tour of a British rock band called Spinal Tap, and shows the enormous difficulties and crazy things they carry out on and off the stage. It's supposed to be a comedy... but, to be honest, it didn't make me laugh. I recognize the value that this film had for the cinematographic subgenre it launched, and the interest that the film has for cinema students and others who deepen their knowledge of the seventh art in greater detail. For me, as I'm just a guy who watches films because he likes them, it's different: it's harder to convince me to watch this a second time because of the many technical arguments they might use. Being a comedy, it has to be funny. If it doesn't, it failed as a comedy (even considering the fact that I may not be the target audience, that would just be a sign that it's not a film for me). Although it didn't make me laugh, I recognize that Rob Reiner does an interesting job and manages to give his film enormous authenticity on all levels. I wonder what fieldwork he did to prepare for the project, whether he spoke to journalists who follow the music industry, with bands or music artists, because in fact the film captures quite well the bizarre things that can happen on a rock tour. And the work of the main actors (Michael McKean, Harry Shearer, Christopher Guest) is equally worthy if we consider that much of what they say is improvised at that moment, not previously written. The film looks cheap and this is perhaps even intentional: the cinematography resembles a “found-footage” film, with the image shaky, poorly calibrated, full of grain at times. The sets are very good and the soundtrack, made for the film, is absolutely believable.

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