This is ... it?

Rating: Null/10 (2 August 2008)

A subtly funny and intimate little movie. However, having been told about how good this movie was until my ears dropped off, having seen it referenced on innumerable occasions, and having watched the Spinal Tap-episode of the Simpsons, I kind of anticipated a comedic legend, one of the funniest movies in the history of movie-making, but the buildup turned out to be too big for the actual movie. Ideally you would have seen this at 15, an age when rock 'n' roll still really mattered, and when it came out in 1984, at a time when tediously pompous rock bands in spandex were still all the rage and hip hop and "alternative" music were still in the offing. Watching it two decades too late makes it appear a bit dated, and the jokes aren't that hard-hitting either.