Overview
A hilarious journey through the chaos of rock stardom and the absurdity of fame.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Moderate
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- None
- deadpan
- irreverent
- witty
- comedy night
- music movie marathon
What critics said
Critics broadly regard the film as an exceptionally funny and influential mockumentary whose convincing rock-documentary texture sharpens its satire of music-industry excess.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Marty DiBergi's camera treats Spinal Tap's comeback tour, interviews, and backstage crises as a serious rock documentary.
Nigel, David, and Derek discuss absurd career disasters and grandiose lyrics with unwavering seriousness.
The band's comeback depends on elaborate presentation and status anxiety, culminating in the disastrously undersized Stonehenge prop.
Invented band history, interviews, concert footage, and music-industry anecdotes imitate the texture of a genuine rock chronicle.
Films like This Is Spinal Tap, and why
Waiting for Guffman
deadpan mockumentary comedy using documentary realism to satirize performers and their self-important public personas
Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story
music-centered parody combining fictional performances, absurd backstage behavior, and affectionate industry satire
The Rutles: All You Need Is Cash
mockumentary structure, improvised-feeling ensemble comedy, and satire of entertainment-world vanity
A Mighty Wind
observational comedy about an unraveling creative group, with awkward interviews and escalating professional dysfunction
Movie Details
- Director
- Rob Reiner
- Release Date
- 1984-03-02
- Runtime
- 82 min
- Rating
- 7.4 / 10 (1705)
Cast
- Christopher Guest
- Michael McKean
- Harry Shearer
- Rob Reiner
- June Chadwick
- Tony Hendra
- Bruno Kirby
- Ed Begley Jr.
- Paul Benedict
- Zane Buzby
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- HBO Max Amazon Channel
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is This Is Spinal Tap about?
- A proudly inept heavy metal comeback tour becomes a deadpan anatomy of rock-star vanity, backstage chaos, and spectacle gone gloriously wrong.
- What is This Is Spinal Tap like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of This Is Spinal Tap as brisk, its intensity as moderate and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is This Is Spinal Tap violent?
- No — Ember's analysis finds no violence in This Is Spinal Tap.
- What did critics think of This Is Spinal Tap?
- Critics broadly regard the film as an exceptionally funny and influential mockumentary whose convincing rock-documentary texture sharpens its satire of music-industry excess.
- Which films are like This Is Spinal Tap?
- Films with a similar feel include Waiting for Guffman, Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story, The Rutles: All You Need Is Cash, and A Mighty Wind.
- How long is This Is Spinal Tap?
- This Is Spinal Tap runs 82 minutes.
- Where can I watch This Is Spinal Tap?
- In United States, This Is Spinal Tap streams on HBO Max Amazon Channel.
