Return to previous page 

The first time you saw the film, was it hard for you? It's obviously quite intimate and not always flattering.

RR: I was the last one to see the movie finished. Lips pretty much saw the movie being made throughout the whole process. He never really got to see it like I did. He can tell you what he thought. For me, I saw it three times. The first time I saw it was at Sacha's house, it blew me away. I was at a loss for words. I knew it was something special and I had to watch it again right away, because I was overwhelmed. The second time, I saw what he was really doing. The third time, I just stood up after and told him it was a genius piece of work.

Lips? How did this start for you and how did you feel?

LK: OK, right, yeah. Um. My initial thoughts when Sacha got in touch with me ... I wasn't surprised to find out that he was a successful screenwriter and he would be successful at anything he put his mind to doing. He is a brilliant kid. And he was an Anvil fan. Upon getting back together with him, and talking to him and telling him about what he had missed over the 20 years, it was quickly apparent that he was sparked up by what I had told him. About a week after, he flew up to Toronto and he told me he was going to make a movie about us. And instantly, and I mean like really instantly, I envisioned everything that is happening to us right now.

Wow. So you saw this as a possible way to ...

LK: I burst out crying. I was totally [expletive] up. OK? I thought in my mind's eye that ... it was my destiny. I built the story. Everything I've done in my life has been for this cause. This is the focal point, this is my moment. That is what I saw in my mind's eye. That is what I felt happening when he told me that he was making this. Now, I had been so optimistic that even previously before going into Sundance, I just figure it was a shoo-in. You make a movie and you put it into Sundance! [Laughs.] Anyway, I was completely beleaguered when they told me it wasn't like that, "What!?"

You are the eternal optimist, Lips.

LK: Everyone was worried that it wouldn't get in ... I was like, "What are you guys so worried about? Don't you realize what you've made here?" All along I have been seeing it for exactly what it was because ... what I did was I completely went out there and revealed everything, dude! Like everything! It didn't matter what it was, I give it. And the more that I can give, the better the movie's going to be. It's not acting, OK? It's letting yourself be transparent. Letting yourself completely ... it's like the naked picture of me in the movie. I mean, that's the only thing that bothered me, but it's the most symbolic aspect. Not only do I appear naked, but I completely open up my entire life history and my situation to the world. But my internal feelings are it is so compelling and I, I just ... I am a "say it like it is person" and if anyone is going to deliver something compelling, it's going to be me! So instead of being intimidated by the cameras, I actually embraced it. If there were overly emotional moments, I didn't care. Let it roll!

So, let's talk about "Spinal Tap." There are a ton of references, obviously: The contraption that goes to 11, "Hello Cleveland" when walking through an arena, going to Stonehenge. Were you ...

LK: Oh, yeah ... we went there on purpose, man.

Well, the great thing about it is the film is never acknowledged. It just hangs there, over the documentary.

LK: Yeah, definitely on purpose. You know, the contraption that goes to 11 in our film, it was inspired by "Spinal Tap." I mean, of course we're going to be compared to Spinal Tap, because, first of all: Robb Reiner. [Laughter.] No. 2, it's a rock documentary and it's heavy metal. You're done! You know you're toast. What are you going to do to avoid it? Why even try to avoid it? So we embraced it. It's there, but it's a poke. We know what you're thinking, you know we know what you're thinking, so let's have some fun with it. We've been calling it the Trojan horse. You think you're getting one thing with this movie, but you get something entirely different.

Let's chat about the music business. When your album is turned down in Los Angeles, you decide finally to go online and sell there. Is this the future of the business? Do you see labels evaporating completely?

LK: It's not the future, it's the present.

RR: It's happening full force. Labels are trying to reinvent themselves and they are dying. The record business is not what it once was. But it's good. Keeping things in house is a good thing. It's more honest and you get those corporate [expletive] whores out of the [expletive] way.

Well the other great thing for you guys is the huge metal community that is online. It's a great force for bands.

LK: Yeah, and before they were on the Web, there were underground fanzines and so forth. You could collect bootleg tapes, tape trading. All of this was happening in the earlier years. All that has happened is that instead of by snail mail it's all done through electronic mail. It is great.

Thanks for taking the time. I forgot to say up front: I love this film. By the end, I was weeping like a baby. When you go to Japan and you're walking to the arena and we as an audience are praying you get a turnout, it's an amazing finale to the film.

LK: No. You know what the incredible finale to the film is? It's what has happened after the movie.

RR: Hell yeah.

"Anvil! The Story of Anvil" is opening in new cities each week. Do you want to see it? If you've seen it, what are your thoughts? Write to us at heymsn@microsoft.com