At the age of 14, best friends Lips and Robb Reiner make a pact to rock together forever. Their band Anvil, hailed as the "demigods of Canadian metal," influences a musical generation including Metallica, Slayer and Anthrax. Though Anvil never makes it big, they never stop playing or believing. Following a calamitous European tour, Lips and Robb, now well into their 50s, set off to record their 13th album, This Is Thirteen, in one last attempt to fulfill their boyhood dream. While filmmaker Sacha Gervasi, a successful screenwriter (The Terminal), has an eye for some of the implicit humour here, what prevails is his respect for the perseverance and passion that drives Anvil. Yes, they do have an actual "11" setting on the volume knob. However, their stamina, even while hanging onto their day jobs, makes Anvil the real deal, and this the rock doc of the year.
-Sean Farnel