Spinal Tap II: The End Continues

I wasn't old enough to catch the original 'This Is Spinal Tap' when it came out, but I discovered it in the '90s after a musician friend recommended it. He loved the film because he thought it was so true to life in the music industry. There's even a famous story that Ozzy Osbourne didn't realise it was a comedy.

I saw the sequel in a cinema today with only two other people, but that didn't stop me from laughing out loud. The fly-on-the-wall documentary format shines on the big screen, and the humour translates perfectly.

The film has plenty of funny scenes and two fantastic cameo performances from Elton John and Paul McCartney. It was great to see that the band, which genuinely became a live act in their own right after the original film, still look like they are enjoying themselves while playing.

Ultimately, the film surpassed my expectations. It captured the spirit and humour of the original, and Rob Reiner, along with the cast, succeeds at a difficult task: bringing a sequel to life decades later. The result is a follow-up that not only honours the legacy of the first film but also feels fresh and relevant.

Every time I hear of a sequel being made for a movie, something along the lines of "30 years later" or "the next generation", I always feel skeptical to watch it, and I'm usually right for doing so.

No way was I expecting this to be the masterpiece that the first movie was, but I also didn't find it lacklustre or underwhelming. It wasn't necessary to make sequel, but since they did make it, I found it watchable and effortlessly funny like the first.

Sure, it wasn't as funny as the first-they rehashed a lot of the jokes-but I think some references were needed for us fans to connect with the movie.

I felt it had continued on with the trajectory of the first movie in terms of the humour. It's understandable that it's not going to have the energy of the first (I mean, they are older now), but the script (or improv) made sense with where the characters/actors are at this point of their career.

Overall, it was a bearable sequel with its own unique moments (and I definitely agreed with the cameos). It might not require multiple viewings, but I wouldn't mind watching it for a second time, just to see if I had missed any subtle gags.

This film is a logical sequel to the 1984 classic, catching up with the band 41 years later during a one off reunion gig.

Whilst it falls a little short of the absurdity and satire of it's famous predecessor it's still very funny with Paul McCartney and Elton John both game to send themselves up too. It lacks the freshness and set pieces of the original but the dialogue still crackles and is where most of the belly laughs are located.

Personally I really enjoyed it although I noticed several scenes in the trailer did not make the final cut (and will probably be included on the dvd release). And although the main cast has obviously aged, Rob Reiner's Martin DiBergi curiously looks pretty much as he did back in 1984 (including the same hat!). And considering the songs the band sings are deliberately twee or pompous and hilarious, they are so well performed you just get caught up in the whole thing.

A worthy sequel to a stone cold classic that made the audience laugh out loud at least every two minutes (which is more than the Naked Gun reboot did) and is probably best enjoyed on the big screen.

I loved the first movie, which came out when I was 19 or 20. Some of the guys I saw the movie with didn't even realize it was a mockumentary, which was funny by itself. The first film I saw in this genre was The Rutles: All You Need is Cash, which was on TV. That was funny too. But Spinal Tap seemed to open a door for the genre, spawning many films and inspiring many TV shows. Seeing the guys 40 years later (for both them and me) was a pleasure.

Like the first one, it feels very improvised It has a loose structure, but iys mostly improv. Professional drummers have fun cameos. Two music icons have great scenes. It's a lot of fun.

I laughed out loud several times, as did the only other person in the theater I saw it in. Not as many laughs as the first, and no iconic lines like "this one goes to 11". But laughing out loud is a pleasure, and so was this film.

Trying to re-create the magic and the innocence of the original spinal tap movie had to have been incredibly difficult to pull off. The jokes that were so funny in the first movie were probably just improvised by the actors, not necessarily, knowing if they were going to be that laughable or not. They tried that same formula for this new one and the jokes just fell flat. I hate to say it, but you sense that they were going through the motions a little bit bringing up ridiculous stuff they did in the past, and of course, bringing in legendary Rockstars like Elton John to give it more clout. There were a few moments in the movie that were mildly amusing, but that was about it. Sorry guys. My review won't be going up to 11. It'll be just a modest five or six on the volume scale. In other words it was pretty mediocre unfortunately. Hey at least they got the band back together for one last gig.