This cult film is a rock “mockumentary,” written, scored by and starring Rob Reiner, Christopher Guest, Michael McKean and Harry Shearer. The film portrays the fictional British heavy metal band Spinal Tap satirizing the wild personal behavior and musical pretentions of heavy metal bands. One of the greatest spoofs about a filmmaker making a documentary about a once–famous, now almost– forgotten British heavy metal band returning to the US for a concert tour after a 17 year hiatus. In 2002, the film was deemed “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant” by the Library of Congress and was selected for preservation by the United States National Film Registry. (1984) 82 min.

Part of The Center’s multidisciplinary project Under the Influence of Rock & Roll.