Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie: An Homage to a Sci-Fi Classic That Doesn't Quite Deliver (Blu-ray)

The Film:

Back in 2007, a small Canadian web series called "Nirvana the Band the Show" was released starring Matt Johnson and Jay McCarol as fictionalized versions of themselves who are members of "Nirvana the Band," with the entire premise focusing on their attempts to land a gig at a venue called The Rivoli. Eight years later, they launched a TV show called "Nirvanna the Band the Show," which lasted two seasons and followed the same plot. At this point, you would think that the idea had been played out, but several years after that, they've opted to turn the same set-up into a feature film called "Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie." After a combined 27 episodes between the web series & the TV show, could these two possibly find something more to do with this material, or will this simply be a case of digging a little too deep?

The film begins in 2008, where musicians Matt Johnson & Jay McCarrol are dead-set as ever on playing a gig at The Rivoli, with their latest scheme involving putting up a bunch of fliers. Their plans continue to fail, and yet, as we jump to 17 years later, we still find them trying to achieve their goal. After the latest scheme fails (one involving skydiving into a nearby stadium), Jay starts to lose faith in Matt's ideas, leading him to attempt a quick solo gig. However, when Matt's new plan, involving pretending to be time travelers, actually causes them to go back in time to 2008, they find that a small change they made ends up having a serious impact on their present, one that has put them on very different paths and could put an end to their long friendship.

Right at the start, I must confess that I had never heard of this duo, their web series, or their subsequent TV show, but it's rather interesting to learn that the probably reason for this is that they were never mainstream hits. However, they have garnered a kind of cult following over the years, which when combined with the positive reviews they've gotten from fans & critics, makes it understandable how a feature film version could get made based on the same premise they've used before. That said, having never seen their previous work before, all impressions will be based on the film alone.

When it comes to "Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie," what Johnson & McCarrol were clearing going for was a light riff/homage to the classic masterpiece "Back to the Future," a fact that they don't make any kind of secret given all of the direct references, them watching the movie, and their duplication of the time travel equipment from the film. It's not a particularly bad idea in itself, but the problems arise in the way that they try to go about it. They change the past, which alters the future, naturally things go terribly wrong, and they try to fix it. Even with some very minor tweaks to its formulaic approach here & there, it ends up being executed in such a ho-hum, repetitive, and predictable fashion that it never truly becomes as engaging as they want it to be.

They try to shake things up a bit by incorporating a kind of "gorilla filmmaking" style that has them interacting with an unsuspecting public, but it's just not enough to offset the fairly standard path that the film is set on, which comes right down to the climax & conclusion that the audience is expecting given its aforementioned inspiration. Their specific style & the straightforwardness of their plot may be enough to appeal to their cult fanbase, but as for everyone else, it's going to depend on how much you can get engaged by "candid camera" antics & a somewhat forgettable homage to a sci-fi classic. It's hardly what one would call a bad effort, but ultimately there just isn't a whole lot here that stands out to make it worth the 90-ish-minute investment.

Video/Audio:

"Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie" comes to Blu-ray in a 1.78:1, 1080p High Definition transfer of excellent quality, presenting a sharp & clear picture throughout the entire 100-minute duration. Likewise, the 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track is fantastic, giving you all of the dialogue & music in outstanding quality. Overall, NEON has done a great job in both areas for the film's physical debut.

Special Features:

Commentary with Matt Johnson, Jay McCarrol, and the Production Team

Commentary with Matt Johnson and the Post Team

Home Movies (12 Minutes): A behind the scenes look at the making of the film.

Animatics (12 Minutes, 2 Segments)

Alternate Opening (4 Minutes)

Ethan Deleted Scene (2 Minutes)

Figured It Out (21 Minutes): Additional deleted material.

Nirvanna the Band the Show: Episode 1 - The Banner (21 Minutes)

Conclusion:

Matt Johnson's "Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie" presents a mildly-intriguing attempt to deliver an homage to Robert Zemeckis' sci-fi masterpiece "Back to the Future," but sadly it's executed in such a ho-hum, repetitive, and predictable manner that it never truly reaches the level of engagement that it's aiming for, ultimately making for a film that might please the stars' cult fanbase, but will likely leave most others wishing there was more to it.

Score: 3/5

Available on Blu-ray starting tomorrow.

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