Synopsis

At 14, Toronto school friends Steve “Lips” Kudlow and Robb Reiner made a pact to rock together forever. Their band Anvil went on to become the “demi-gods of Canadian metal,” releasing one of the heaviest albums in metal history, 1982’s “Metal on Metal.” The album influenced a musical generation including Metallica, Slayer, and Anthrax. All those bands went on to sell millions of records but Anvil’s career would take a different path – straight into obscurity. But Lips and Robb never gave up on their childhood dream and kept rocking, always believing that one day Anvil would taste the success that had so long eluded them. The film follows Lips and Robb, now in their 50s, as they gear up to record their 13th album, “This is Thirteen.” Coping with increasingly impatient families, crippling mortgages and the effects of old age, they know this is their last chance to really make it. By any normal standards the journey has not been a success but Lips comes to terms with what success really means. He has everything he needs. Family, fans and the integrity of having stayed true to a pact he made with his best friend 30 years ago. When all is said and done, he’s made 13 albums and his music will last forever. The director, Sacha Gervasi, was a huge fan of heavy metal when he was a teenager. After meeting the legendary heavy metal band Anvil at the age of 15, he was invited to roadie for the band during a Canada tour the following summer. After 20 years he decided to track down his old buddies Lips and Robb and made this documentary.

Director

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  • Sacha Gervasi
  • Sacha Gervasi, a heavy metal enthusiast, spent his teenage years immersed in the music. At 15, he attended an Anvil concert in London and was recruited as a roadie, learning drums from Robb Reiner during the summer tour. He later studied screenwriting at UCLA Film School and wrote the script for Steven Spielberg’s The Terminal, starring Tom Hanks. He also worked on the screenplays for How to Marry a Millionaire and Dallas. He is currently working on a project about the life of actor Herve Villechaize.