Nirvanna The Band The Movie: Movie Review

Nirvanna The Band The Show- The Movie: Movie Review

Cast: Matt Johnson, Jay McCarrol

Director: Matt Johnson

There's a warm goofiness to Nirvanna The Band The Show- The Movie that may be catnip to some and anathema to others.

Based on a cult Canadian comedy series that began way back in 2007, it followed the duo Matt Johnson and Jay McCarrol, a pair of would-be musicians desperate to score a gig at a local club - and concocting plenty of out-there plans to do so, rather than simply contacting their dream venue.

The film version of that series follows a template that mixes mockumentary with time-travel shenanigans riffing on Back To The Future while never holding back from acknowledging the fact it's directly like it.

When they end up back in 2008, the duo tries to work out how to get back - and if indeed, they can or should do so.

To say Nirvanna The Band The Show- The Movie is a little niche is perhaps to undersell it.

In parts, it feels like a fly-on-the-wall documentary that's in the style of hidden camera pranks as they bumble through their life - though, when the moments hit, they land with a conviction and a humour that's amusing, if not outright hilarious.

Perhaps more effective riffing on perceived Canadian politeness (a running gag literally sees Matt running through the streets and continually apologising to those in the way) and the Toronto way of life, Nirvanna The Band The Show- The Movie feels in parts like a series of sketches stitched together with the loosest of threads.

But there are audacious moments too.

One sequence early on which sees them apparently jumping from Toronto's CN Tower and skydiving into a local stadium (because it's their plan to get noticed) benefits greatly for a WTF feeling of "Did they actually do that?". 

And there's no denying a DIY storehand's comment of "I'm a Libertarian, but I wouldn't do that" when the pair talks of using pliers to cut wires is laugh-out loud funny - even if you're not sure whether it's been scripted.

It also has a huge heart too, capturing some of the uncertainties of mid-life male relationships and the ennui that comes with continual disappointment. Its deeply philosophical line of "if you got a best friend, you won’t even notice getting older", may be one of the cinema's truest ever moments, that will land with its core audience as the final third dips into maudlin melancholy and an examination of what life really is about.

Nirvanna The Band The Show- The Movie is one of those films that will benefit from fans poring over it and picking out the sight gags and running jokes. But it still can't escape the feeling of being overlong and for a certain core audience, rather than mass appeal.