Rating: 
Summary: Extremely Funny. See Princess Bride
Review: If there is any evidence that the AFI needs to have their list-making licenses revoked, it is (a) that "This Is Spinal Tap" appeared only 29th on the "100 Funniest American Movies" list, and (b) that it was completely absent from the "100 Best American Movies" collection. There simply has never been a more complete comedy than "This Is Spinal Tap." It sits atop my list as the most clever, witty, and quotable film ever produced.Director Rob Reiner (who also directed "The Princess Bride") shows us the twilight months of the title band, who is almost in denial of their waning popularity. It is a truly accurate portrayal of a washed-up rock group, and perhaps the paragon of satirical films. With the benefit of some of comedy's most talented actors, including Christopher Guest and Harry Shearer, there is no low point to the film. It is delightful to watch the band's almost embarassing decline as they encounter obstacles such as an 18" Stonehenge, ill-proportioned sandwich meat, second billing to a puppet show, and of course exploding drummers. The band's naivte and stupidity, juxtaposed to false confidence, is a formula for humor. Also entertaining are the frequent star cameos, including Paul Schaffer and Billy Crystal. One's entertainment library would simply be void without "This Is Spinal Tap." Besides, this one goes to 11
Rating:
Summary: Welcome to the cast of THE WIZ and SPINAL TAP
Review: Defying easy description, SPINAL TAP is part documentary, part comedy and part real-life character study. In this "ROCKUMENTARY", filmmaker Marty DiBergi (Rob Reiner who also directs) follows the heavy metal band SPINAL TAP as their careers are uncontrollably ending. Always clinging to the past, the boys in the band (including comic geniuses CHRISTOPHER GUEST, MICHAEL McLEAN and HARRY SHEARER) keep challenging the heavy metal beast. The film was created using improvisation in place of the usual scripting. This gives tremendous believability throughout the film. Watch for BILLY CRYSTAL, BRUNO KIRBY, ANGELICA HUSTON, PAUL SHAFFER, DANA CARVEY and FRAN DRESCHER scattered throughout. This DVD is the second release of the film (following an earlier loaded CRITERION release). But, don't let that fool you. This one is filled as well including many documentaries and deleted scenes as well as a scene specific commentary by SPINAL TAP themselves! A brilliant continuation of character.
Rating: 
Summary: an interesting film, but not my favorite
Review: This review is for the Criterion Collection edition. Since I am not a fan of rock music, I am not too familiar with this film. Having watched it, seemed to give me a sense of the 'rockumentary' idea of it. The film itself is not really a documentary since it is a work of ficttion. It seems to be somewhat of a comedy, but i did not find it as funny as most comedies I have seen. The Criterion edition is LOADED with special features and is well worth the money for any fan of the movie. Being out of print makes this a great collector's item also.
Rating:
Summary: A CULT CLASSIC!!!
Review: If you wanna see a classic 80's rock movie, then you've come to the right place. Spinal tap the movie is the greatest documentary on rock music. Its got pretty funny moments and the band is pure 80's. As for the criterion dvd, which is pretty much impossible to find these days is also amazing. Its got two rare commentaries, deleted scenes, promotional material, and other great extras. These extras are not found on the mgm release but if your willing to throw down alot of money for this dvd its worth it....pure status!!
Rating:
Summary: A CLASSIC! THE BEST ROCKUMENTARY FILM EVER!
Review: This is Spinal Tap is the brilliant rockumentary/mockumentary chronicling the band Spinal Tap's tour of the United States. This was Rob Reiner's debut film, and what a film to begin with. This is Spinal Tap remains somewhat of a cult classic, but its hilarious characters, awesome music, and brilliant storyline comes to life on screen, and everyone could enjoy this movie. Michael McKean plays the lead singer David St. Hubens to perfection, while Harry Shearer plays Derek Smalls with great finesse. A young Christopher Guest plays Nigel with a quiet brilliance, and Guest would incidentally go on to direct and star in two of his own mockumentary films, WAITING FOR GUFFMAN and BEST IN SHOW, which I must say, are equally genius, especially the recent sleeper hit BEST IN SHOW. Also great is Tony Hendra, as the cricket-stick wielding manager of the band. June Chadwick is strong as David's girlfriend Jeannine, and Bruno Kirby makes a great cameo as the limo driver. The other supporting cameos are fantastic, coming from Fred Willard(who won a Best Supporting Actor award from the LA Critics for his role in BEST IN SHOW), Dana Carvey, Billy Crystal, Fran Drescher, Angelica Huston, and Paul Shaffer. This utterly hilarious movie is excellently directed by Reiner, who plays the director of the mockumentary within the film, Marty Dibergi! Fantastic!
Rating:
Summary: Smell The Glove
Review: It amazes me that to this day, nearly 20 years later, there are still some people who thought this was real. That Spinal Tap actually existed. It's hilarious. This film is truly one of a kind. It perfectly lampoons the life, success, and downfall of a rock group. The film is shot as a documentary, or as this kind of film is, a 'mockumentary'. It's being done by director Marty DiBergi(Rob Reiner, who also directed and co-wrote the film), who is best known for commercials. He chronicles the life of legendary british band, Spinal Tap. The members of this band include David St. Hubbins(the always great Michael McKean), who is the vocalist of the group. Nigel Tufnel(the brilliant Christopher Guest), is the lead guitarist. Big mustached Derek Smalls(the great Harry Shearer), is the bass player. They started out in the mid 1960's as a mellower hippy/pop type band with songs like "Listen(To What The Flower People Say)". The documentary chronicles that to where they are today. They turned into a long haired, heavy metal group with songs like "Big Bottom", "Sex Farm", and others. The entire film shows their struggles to maintain their career as it appears to be falling down the tubes. Producers won't release their album, concerts are cancelled, no one comes to autograph signings. The inner turmoil within the band is showcased as well. They suffered from we could call, 'the Yoko syndrome', where St. Hubbins' girlfriend, Janine Pettibone(June Chadwick), comes into the picture and causes friction within the group. Throughout the film and interviews, there are concert clips showing the band in glorious action. The film was written by our three stars, and they must have spent time in this world because many musicians have stated the authenticity of it all. Not only did they write it and get it down pat, but these three guys also wrote every song and really performed them. They might not of been a real group, but they could of been. Keep your eyes peeled open for appearances by Billy Crystal, Dana Carvey, and Fran Drescher at a party. Fred Willard and Ed Begley Jr., who have become Chris Guest regulars in his future films, appear here as well. Willard, as he will in the future films, steals every single frame he is in. Ed Begley, Jr. plays the band's original guitarist who died in an awful gardening accident. This continues as a running gag(that always works)thru the rest of the film concerning their drummers. The movie is funny. It's not the kind of comedy that a lot of people will get. Read the one star reviews below for that. It's a type of comedy that is very dry, but also very funny. If you are not in on it, you will not get it or respect it for what it is and is trying to do. Same goes for Guest's future films(Waiting For Guffman and Best In Show). The DVD comes with a great load of cool extras. The three guys, in character, give audio commentary. It's priceless. There is a new interview with Rob Reiner. There is a slew of other special features here. Over an hour of never before seen footage; Theatrical trailers; 6 TV commercials; an appearance on "The Joe Franklin Show"; 4 music videos for "Listen(To What The Flower People Say)", "Hell Hole", "Big Bottom", and one I can't remember the name of. It's a hysterical film that hits on every mark. Definitley the funniest movie about music ever made, and the all time best 'mockumentary'. And once again, just to make sure, this was not a real band. Go ahead and see this. It's one of a kind.
Rating:
Summary: Is Anyone Able to Offer an Informed Comparison?
Review: We KNOW this is one of the funniest films ever made (particularly to those of us who grew up watching Hullabaloo and Shindig). What I suspect most of us DON'T know is how the Special Edition compares to the Criterion release. Can anyone help?
Rating:
Summary: The funniest movie EVER made! (This includes Monty Python!)
Review: Any rock music fan can tell you that Spinal Tap is a BRILLIANT satire of early 80's Heavy Metal. (The Scorpians reportedly walked out of the theatre, as they felt that the film makers were mocking them in particular.) That being said, even those who have little appreciation of music will find much to laugh at as we follow this pathetic band of musicians and hangers-on through a tour of North America. From Nigel Tuffnell's amplifier that goes up to "eleven", to David St. Hubbin's unbelievably dim girlfriend, Janine, to the legendary Stonehenge scequence, the laughs are fast and furious. However, the reason to get this DVD, particularly if you're a fan of the movie, is for the nearly 90 minutes of out takes and deleted scenes. Ever wonder why Nigel and David have sores on thier mouths in the restaurant scene? The answer awaits on the DVD! In fact, the outtakes by themselves stand alone as a film nearly as funny as the original. If you've ever wanted the sequel, herre it is! Buy it and enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: Dated farsical gods...
Review: I'm not giving this film 3 stars as a comedy but actually as a serious film. What??? Well, here's the thing: I watched "This is Spinal Tap" in 2004. For whatever reasons i hadn't seen it up until this point, but i can't help it that it seemed dated to me. More than probably, back in 1984 when it was released, this thing cut it. It cut it with the frequency of humor it had and with the story it presents. But today? Today, it simply seems dated and even from a historical point of view there could've been a much better result to have come out of it, especially if another (more interesting) band was featured. It's not like there weren't any choices out there, geeez, this is the rock world we're talking about. Motorhead, for one band, would've easily incorporated many of the "assets" of Spinal Tap as well as other added ones that would've made the overall product much more attractive and poignant. But having said that, Spinal Tap does have its worth and this is where i come to my point: I personally laughed wholeheartedly with only a few scenes in this film, mainly because to me this was hardly a comedy. Now, this is indeed scary, but why would i laugh with something supposedly made to mock when even big bands (no need to mention names) have been 50 times funnier as Tap? Or when i constantly read to this very day daily quotes from the rock gods that make you first re-read the quote with amazement and then burst with laughter realising it's seriously said. Did i say "serious"? That's exactly it. This film attempts to make something look funny when it's already hilarious to begin with. It tries too much, and often during the film i thought that stretching it was totally un-needed and spoiled the effort. I read the official review from Amazon and at the very end of it, it says that this is the best rocumentary ever made. I take up a serious issue with that assessment folks: Unless one has not seen "Almost famous" (came out 4 years ago) would that statement hold sadly true. But Almost Famous is leagues better than Spinal Tap, it's far more poignant, far more accurate, far funnier, far deeper (ok, that wouldn't be too difficult) and it far more captures the times it portrays than Spinal Tap could ever hope to. I think that Spinal Tap is still watchable exactly because we know this is real (well, some of us do). Bands like that did exist in much worse form even, and -that's even scarier- they still do today (again, no need to mention names, those with even half a brain know the culprits). If someone wanted to find another Spinal Tap-like band to make a film about today he wouldn't have the slightest problem. Not back then, not now, not in 20 years from now, as pathetic as that sounds for the rock scene. Or for any musical scene for that matter. As a movie, "Spinal Tap" does well picking on all the rock cliches and their inane shallowness, it does even better representing the average rock farsical god, but it does so without keeping you interested enough, especially if you're not a rock afficionado and you dont "see" the references. The humor and the punchlines quickly become not so much repetitive but definately predictable, the horrible Tap songs are simply too horrifying to endure, you end up being thankful the 80s are gone and buried, and yet those with a deep knowledge of the scene are left thinking that this is only the tip of the iceberg and that the rest is left untouched in the film. All in all, the Tap movie does have its place in musical history (exactly where that place is, I'm not so sure). However, when it comes to films about the surreality of the rock scene things are pretty bleak: there are simply not many films, with the exception of 3-4, that capture that in an adequate way. All i can suggest for the time being is to opt instead for "Almost Famous". Encyclopaedically speaking though, "This is Spinal Tap" does have its merits...
Rating:
Summary: Great movie -- Criterion vs. Special below
Review: Hilarious! I too was curious about the difference between this special edition and the criterion version, so I did a little internet research and found an entire page devoted to this question. www.thedigitalbits.com/reviews/thisisspinaltapse.html
Read it and you decide. I'm going with the Special. Hope this helps.
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