BY JOSE MARTINEZ

Metal ruled in a loud and rude way Tuesday night at the Los Angeles movie premiere of Anvil: The Story of Anvil. The documentary directed by Anvil die-hard fan Sacha Gervasi (screenwriter for Spielberg's The Terminal) played well to an invited audience of metal lovers including WWE Superstar Chris Jericho, Henry Rollins, filmmaker Penelope Spheeris, Riki Rachtman, man about town Mark McGrath (what event doesn't this guy go to?), funny man John Mayer, the silly Madden brothers, actor Ryan Gosling, and Dustin Hoffman. (OK, I don't know what kind of music Dustin Hoffman listens to, but he's Dustin Hoffman for crying out loud!)

Introduced by Gervasi bud Keanu Reeves, the film made an impression on the folks at VH1 who acquired the rights when it first premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. With onscreen props given by the likes of Slash, Lemmy, and Lars Ulrich, Anvil was the metal band that seemed to influence all the great metal bands of the ‘80s without ever really taking off themselves. Founding members singer/guitarist Steve ‘Lips' Kudlow and drummer Robb Reiner have been playing since they were teenagers and enjoyed a modicum of success back circa 1982.

Although Rob Reiner, the Spinal Tap director, has nothing to do with Anvil, the film does play like a true-to-life version of This Is Spinal Tap. Playing gigs on weekends and going on tour during vacations from their day jobs, the poor guys in Anvil get hooked up with a loony tour manager (who, funny enough, will be booking the Scorpions tour of the Philippines) who is just in over her head. Playing to tiny crowds or getting stiffed by shady concert promoters, it's one mishap after another for the poor Canadian metal band. And all the while the band members are waiting for that elusive "break" that has been evading them all their lives.

Funny yet touching, the lads in Anvil, especially Lips, really give it their all to be in the band. It's interesting to see what makes one band take off while another stays grounded.

After the screening, Anvil rocked the crowd playing a brief set in the famed Egyptian Theatre. They invited Gervasi to sit behind the drums on one song, and brought up Anthrax guitarist Scott Ian to play on Anvil's most well known song "Metal on Metal," which Lips declares the "national anthem of metal."

Anvil: The Story of Anvil hits movie theaters this Friday but lookout for the band who will be performing at the following screenings of the film...

Sunday, April 12 - San Francisco, CA @ Slims

Tuesday, April 14 - Seattle, WA @ El Corazon

Thursday, April 16 - Worcester, MA @ The Palladium

Friday, April 17 - Philadelphia, PA @ Trocadero

Tuesday, April 21 - Detroit, MI @ Crofoot Ballroom

Wednesday, April 22 - Chicago, IL @ The Metro

For more info on Anvil and Anvil: The Story of Anvil see www.anvilthestoryofanvil.com.

[Photos Credit: Brent J. Craig]