“Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie” will open in theaters nationwide Thursday. Credit: Katie Good | Lantern File Photo
“Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie” may be one of the dumbest films released in recent years.
But that stupidity is deliberate. In fact, beneath the surface, the film is ingenious.
And no, it has nothing to do with Kurt Cobain.
Based on the web and television series “Nirvanna the Band the Show,” the Canadian mockumentary film is an epic time-travel adventure created by and starring Matt Johnson and Jay McCarrol, the original creators of the series. It screened at AMC Monday as part of their Screen Unseen series, which premieres never-before-seen films before their wide theatrical releases. The film will open in theaters Thursday, with local showings at Gateway Film Center.
While full of inside jokes from the web series, it’s not necessary to watch to understand the movie — though after watching it, you may want to.
Johnson and McCarrol play fictionalized versions of themselves as they attempt to book a gig at Rivoli’s — a bar and venue in Toronto — for their band Nirvanna, which has zero songs. After failing yet another plan, the pair and Jared, their friend and cameraman, accidentally time travel to 2008 and must find their way back to the future.
It’s oddly a beautiful, heart-warming adventure about the power of friendship, while also being the craziest, most mind-boggling movie theater experience I’ve had in years — maybe ever.
The mockumentary is filmed guerilla-style: quick-paced, high-stakes and impossible to look away from. It doesn’t leave room to breathe. Each scene rolls seamlessly into the next, creating what feels like a never-ending story. It’s also impossible to predict what will happen next. Some scenes give you enough context to deduce what will happen. Some don’t. But the outcome is always shocking nonetheless.
A specific scene of McCarrol on a tour bus stands out as an example. There was not one person in the audience who wasn’t taken aback by it, and it was arguably one of the easiest scenes in the film to predict.
Truthfully, the whole plot of this movie could be spoiled and it’d still be worth seeing. Part of its charm comes from the characters interacting not only with each other, but with their past selves and the public. It may seem confusing, but aside from the movie being stupid funny, its craft is stupid smart.
“Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie” was in development for nearly two decades, meaning some of the mockumentary footage was actually shot in 2008. The scene where future Johnson and McCarrol realize they’re in 2008 is absolutely hilarious, but also incredibly technical.
The same can be said for the scenes of them interacting with their younger selves, which blend archival footage of their 17-year-old selves with newly shot footage of them in their 40s, creating semi-realistic interactions between past and present.
Johnson exhibits that kind of insane, over-the-top personality reminiscent of actor and comedian Tim Robinson. He’s ambitious and relentlessly pursues his dream, doing whatever it takes to play the Rivoli — spoiler alert, their plans are far more complex and dangerous than just actually booking a gig the normal way. McCarrol is more reserved and slightly skeptical of Johnson’s plans, but excitedly goes along with them regardless.
One of the best creative decisions they made was leaving the public completely uninformed. Most of the film is shot in downtown Toronto, including areas such as the CN Tower, with the cast interacting with unsuspecting citizens and tourists who had no idea they were filming a movie.
The strangers’ candid reactions — I didn’t count, but Johnson said “Ope, sorry” in true Canadian fashion dozens of times as he sprinted past people — and their impromptu conversations with the pair solidify the comedic and technical genius of “Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie.”
The entire movie you’re thinking to yourself, “There’s absolutely no way this isn’t staged.” But it wasn’t. Even scenes of McCarrol accepting a Grammy Award, performing a sold-out concert — those were all real, public stunts.
“People were there to see [Hamilton rockers] the Arkells,” Johnson said in an interview with The Georgia Straight. “Jared has a relationship with them, and they did us a huge favour and let [McCarrol] up while we were shooting. That concert is a real concert — nobody is playing along.”
Other scenes, without spoiling too much, required Johnson and McCarrol to have complete, unfiltered access to heavily-guarded areas. When asked how they pulled those scenes off in an interview, the two could not comment.
It’s wild because watching the movie, it seems like a chaotic series of events with no deeper, hidden message. The more you look into it though, the more you pick up on. It’s not glaringly apparent and it’s not some super introspective, cinematic portrayal of society. It’s a super fun adventure through Toronto with two best friends struggling, albeit silently, with their intra and interpersonal thoughts and careers.
It’s self-described as “weird” by Johnson, which is the most accurate word to portray it. It’s a movie that you can only really experience in a theater.
That may sound cliché, but even Johnson says in a pre-recorded message that you’ll only truly experience the whirlwind of “Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie” on the big screen.
Rating: 5/5
