Metal on Metal
Sacha Gervasi started in the entertainment biz as a roadie for Toronto-based almost-weres Anvil: now he gets to revisit his past with his documentary Anvil!: The Story Of Anvil, a real-life This Is Spinal Tap that makes its Australian debut at the Sydney Film Festival. Andrew P Street confirms that yes, he is ready to rock.
Anvil have been cited as a major influence by members of Metallica, Anthrax, Megadeth and Guns N' Roses. Their 1982 Metal On Metal album seemed to herald the emergence of a significant new talent, but despite worldwide touring and stellar reviews... nothing happened. They kept going, however, which Gervasi was genuinely surprised to discover - leading him to contact his former employers about making a documentary
What was the band's initial response when you pitched the idea of the doco to them?
"[Frontman/guitarist] Lips [Steve Kudlow] got it immediately. He laughed and said ‘I guess we're like the real Spinal Tap, huh?' He recognised that this was a huge opportunity for the band. Robb [Reiner, drummer] was skeptical, to say the least. He wanted Anvil to be known for their music, not who they are. When I explained that the movie would bring people into their world and expose them to their music, he got it."
As someone who admired the band and was personally friendly with the individuals, were there moments where you found it difficult to keep rolling?
"Yes. It was hard emotionally on many occasions. These are real people and here are their interior lives being exposed. Their thoughts, feelings, dreams and fears. And also because so much of what is revealed in the film only became known in the moment we were filming it. And there were other times when we just couldn't stop laughing. When Robb reveals his oil painting [a lovingly recreated picture of a turd floating in a toilet bowl] for example, I had to leave the set. I couldn't take it. It was simply too much!"
The greatest irony of the film is that it's rekindled interest in the band - what's their perspective on it? Do they see this as being a validation of their refusal to give up, or do they see it as a reflection on the film rather than the music?
"I believe they see this as a reflection of life. Somehow, someway if you fight hard for what you believe in and you're honest and you simply refuse to quit, you're going to get some kind of a reward from somewhere. That said, I think the last thing they ever expected was for an old fan to make a movie about them and for that movie to go around the world! As Lips says, to be saluted for sticking to your guns ain't so bad!"
How do you follow The Story Of Anvil?
"I am going to write and direct the true story of French actor Herve Villechaize who starred in Fantasy Island and The Man with the Golden Gun. It is based on my own interviews with Herve a week before he committed suicide in 1993 -- yes, another ‘can it really be true?' type of story. And just like in the case of Anvil, it really is true."
Anvil!: The Story Of Anvil screens at the Metro Theatre at 7.30pm on Wed 18 June.