Bizarre Gardening Accidents and Other Band Mishaps
Judging by how many drummers the band goes through due to spontaneous combustion, vomit drowning, and "bizarre gardening accidents," fans might worry about the future of Tap. After numerous albums, these boys — with their skull and Stonehenge sets, nappy rocker hair, and tight leather, cucumber-enhanced pants — are going the way of Underoos and Beta. But they're not going down without a loud fight. After some initial hoopla to kick off the tour, with schmoozers and press types circling, they're ready for their American fans. Unfortunately, after a series of hilarious mishaps — set pieces misbehaving, getting lost backstage, undersized bread in the dressing room — and an ebbing supply of fans that causes show cancellations and managerial shake-ups, they're lucky to still have a ride in a smelly van and gigs at the zoo opening for the puppet show.

Guest, McKean, and Shearer largely improvise each scene, giving the film a bona fide documentary feel and providing a window into each performer's awesome comedic talent. Like much Brit wit, uninitiated viewers might miss some of the funniest moments the first go-'round because of the understated and sly nature of the humor, but that's a great excuse to fire up the disc again and again.

"Yeah, you talk a lot of s**t, don't you?"
If you sold your Criterion edition of This Is Spinal Tap on eBay (going rate was $120 after it was discontinued) then you were the winner. MGM's special edition release contains many of the same features at a fraction the cost, only lacking one audio commentary with director Rob Reiner, producer Karen Murphy, and two editors, as well as other negligible odds and ends. They're replaced here with a brief interview with Reiner (in character), additional music videos, and two Tap appearances: at a "Flower People" Press Conference and on The Joe Franklin Show.

Fans will be happier than the constantly drugged-out keyboard player Viv (David Kaff) when they learn just how many times they can fire up this disc and find something new. The highlight has to be the audio commentary with Nigel, David, and Derek (yes, in character). You know it's going to be funny when Marty starts the commentary with his spiel about making the documentary while a band member comments in the foreground, "Yeah, you talk a lot of s**t, don't you?" They harp on Marty and his fake beard almost the entire time, recalling how they never really trusted him or their manager Ian Faith (Tony Hendra). They also spend a lot of time avoiding the touchy subject of David's now ex-wife Jeanine (June Chadwick) or making random comments like, "this is where you could have used more conditioner."

Outtakes are the next big draw. Despite a poor picture quality, you can't beat over an hour of additional Tap antics. There's a long band interview in a hot tub with Marty; more with Billy Crystal and Dana Carvey playing waiter mimes; a lot more cold-sore comments ("Derek's out of circulation, isn't he?"); and a really long scene with Bruno Kirby's limo driver smoking dope with the band, stripping down to his skivvies, and singing into a pizza-crust microphone. There's much, much more including the reason behind the foil-wrapped cucumber and a hilarious scene where women are making casts out of the band members' butts.

Scandinavian Cheese Festival?
The new interview with Rob Reiner as Marty is brief, slightly humorous, but not as inspired. Hit the "Vintage Tap Materials" page for the aforementioned "Flower People" press conference and an appearance on The Joe Franklin Show. Revisit four classic tunes with music videos "Gimme Some Money" (where they look like the Beach Boys), the hippie-trippy "[Listen to the] Flower People," the standard favorite "Hell Hole," and the very funny and crass "Big Bottom" ("Talk about bum cakes, my girl's got 'em"). The rest of the features fall under the promotional materials category. "Heavy Metal Memories" plays like a special TV offer for a Tap compilation album (a la Solid Gold Favorites) with all of Tap's tunes running like credits as a leather-clad couple enjoys a nighttime beach stroll — "order now!" The theatrical trailer is effective, but not as engaging as the TV spots, one featuring the amplifier that goes up to 11, two that highlight glowing press quotes, and one longer advert that shows old footage of a Scandinavian cheese-rolling festival (yup). Then there are three commercials for a product called Rock and Rolls (either the British version of Hot Pockets or, more likely, a totally made-up microwave goodie) where the band screams out "Rock and Rolls!" while lost backstage.

MGM presents This Is Spinal Tap in widescreen format with a 1.85:1 aspect ratio. The picture is great during the film, but many of the extras have a scratchy, washed-out look to them. The sound is Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround in English with French and Spanish subtitles. Despite standard volume controls which lack the extra kick of Nigel's amps that go up to 11, you can still enjoy England's loudest band pretty darn loud and clear.