Concrete Playground

There’s an unwritten law in the world of heavy metal: if your lead guitarist uses a dildo to play his flying V, then you are bound for success.

Sadly, unwritten laws have a habit of being forgotten and this is precisely the fate of Canadian band, Anvil. Now, twenty five years after their misfire at the big time, soul mates Steve “Lips” Kudlow and Robb Reiner flirt with oblivion in an attempt to achieve fame once and for all.

Director Sacha Gervasi has captured a beautiful story here, shot mainly in diluted colours and with close-ups that reveal the grotesque cherubs of Anvil’s world. Combined with David Norland’s snow-locked score, Gervasi’s documentary is an illustration of the frostbite of missed fame and dreams that refuse to be broken.

There is every chance that you will cry in this film: the story of Lips and Reiner is a bleak, realistic take on what happens to most people who desire fame and success in the arts.