LogFAQs > #972151313

18. This is Spinal Tap (1984)
Directed by Rob Reiner
Score: 164 (Tie)

Forty: 2
Suprak: 4
Mythiot: 7
John: 16
Tangy: 17
Poke: 19
GavsEvans: 22
Vis: 22
Karo: 26
Plasma: 29

2. Forty
Weve got armadillos in our trousers. Its really quite frightening. When I was younger I saw bits and pieces of Spinal Tap and thought they were a real band. I might have just been dumb, but I think thats just how good of a mockumentary this is. They look like rockstars, act like rockstars, and the music is pretty darn good. Even when I was a bit older and sat down and watched it for the first time, it was almost indistinguishable from the real thing. I love classic rock bands and British humor so its one of my favorite movies ever. God, whats my favorite scene? I would say Nigel with the mini bread but of course theres the amp that goes to 11, the Stonehenge debacle, walking around lost backstage
There are some good funny movies out there about the music business (Almost Famous, Blues Brothers, Airheads etc.) but Spinal Tap stands alone for me and comes in at numero dos.

7. Mythiot
Theres a fine line between stupid and clever, and inventing the mockumentary is well into the clever side of the fence. Michael McKean, Christopher Guest, Harry Shearer, and a number of ill-fated drummers are Spinal Tap, a formerly popular rock band known for hendecamally loud and anatomically minded music on tour attempting to promote their newest album. You could listen to these lovably stupid musicians talk to the camera for hours and the songs could actually pass for the big bottomiest of butt-rock that was popular during the 80s. Some of the funniest bits come from the drama around the album cover as well as anytime theres a mishap on stage.

16. John
Gonna mark this one down as most improved of anything on this list, because the first time I watched This is Spinal Tap back in high school, I didn't care for it all. It was particularly disappointing at the time because everyone seemed to hype this up as like the funniest movie of all time, and it just didn't even slightly live up to that hype. Now, years later, I still think it gets overhyped at times, but I something about the humor clicks with me much more than it did way back when. It's a weird area where it's so dryly unfunny that it somehow becomes funny again.

17. Tangy
If it wasnt for Christopher Guests performance of Nigel Tufnel, this movie would be an easy bottom 5 for me. The concept is cool and I have a ton of respect for the attention to detail when it comes to the lore of the band, but dear god does it move at a dreadful pace. Thankfully theres plenty of Nigel scenes to break up the monotony and I cant get enough of him. Everything from the iconic amps labeled up to 11 to him slowly understanding why the album cover could be considered sexist is absolutely hilarious and Im so grateful for all of his appearances outside of the film as well.

https://youtu.be/B1n_WF-76dU

Biggest Laugh: Nigels catering catastrophe

22. Gavs
The most famous mockumentary ever made, This is Spinal Tap charts the rise, fall and rebirth of the eponymous band for a retrospective documentary. Highlights of their career include the controversy over the Black Album cover art, an underwhelming Stonehenge stage prop, and the high turnover rate of the bands seemingly cursed drummers.

What I most admire about this film is its total commitment to the bit. At no point is there any indication that Spinal Tap is not a real band, which enhances the satire. This even continued after the films release, with the bands appearance on The Simpsons treating them like any of the other celebrities to appear on the show over the years. Admire is a good word here, as I feel like I respected this film more than I enjoyed it. I did have a few chuckles but no big laughs. I dont regret watching this film, but it might not be one I will go back to. That said, I did briefly consider ranking this number 11 anyway for the joke.

Fun fact: JK Rowling said that Spinal Taps drummers were her inspiration for the Defence Against the Dark Arts teachers at Hogwarts being replaced every year. I wonder if there was one who choked on someone elses vomit. Ill go check on Pottermore and report back.

22. Vis
This isnt the funniest, or the most exciting movie Ive watch (especially on a comedy list), but theres something about just how seriously it takes itself, and how seriously it takes the subject matter. There ARE jokes, but theyre played completely straight by these absurd rock star caricatures who you can BELIEVE legitimately would act this way in real life. Nothing in this movie, aside from maybe the racier lyrics (and playing them at a U.S. Military base), comes across as unbelievable, and I think thats what makes the movie work. Its able to pick up some rock cliches and amp them up to eleven without taking the audience out of the documentary narrative structure. The running gags of drummers constantly dying (to the point where new drummers take notice and are relatively unconcerned), and the band randomly going through EVERY style of rock and roll from the 60s onward, are funny. This just ultimately wasnt a laugh out loud movie, so I cant rank it higher than this.

26. Karo
So this is a fake behind the scenes documentary of a fake band on a fake tour in many fake musical venues.
Unfortunately unlike a similar movie on the list this one is an incredibly boring affair that is light on the humor and very heavy on the british dudes mumbling.
It follows the band around as they travel from city to city, stopping every now and then to sing a really bad rock song at a concert because that is supposed to be funny or something. Then all these unlikeable and unexpressive guys with bad haircuts bluh out some points about band management which I guess is also supposed to be funny.
It's (assumedly) not as bad as having a real spinal tap, but its is still not a pleasant experience.

29. Plasma
I cant believe how bored I was while watching Spinal Tap. Though I love classic rock/metal, I absolutely hated this movie.

My biggest problem is that the band is this weird amalgamation of every British rock group from 1960-1980. I get that the writers are satirizing a variety of different acts, but the band itself feels painfully uninspired and every character is a walking sleep-aid. Heres the thing: if I want to hear hilarious, outrageous anecdotes about a rock group, all I have to do is look up real-life interviews. F