Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie review: Silly goofs do Back to the Future
Nirvanna the Band the Show, starring Matt Johnson and Jay McCarrol as fictionalised versions of themselves, ran as a web series from 2007 to 2009 and was later brought back as a TV series between 2017 and 2018. The duo have been trying to make a movie version for years and finally got the money to do so after Johnson directed the brilliant BlackBerry.
The feature, written and directed by Johnson and written and composed by McCarrol, revolves around a parody of/homage to Back to the Future. Matt and Jay have been trying to play a gig at the Rivoli in Toronto since 2008, but they have yet to succeed 17 years later, no matter how big their attempted publicity stunts. After jumping off the CN Tower fails to do the trick, Jay decides to go it alone, thinking Matt is holding him back. However, he doesn’t realise that Matt has rigged their RV with time travel equipment and when he reaches a certain speed, they jump back in time to 2008.
Now, the laws of time travel movies state that you should not interact with your younger selves or change anything; otherwise, it’ll create a butterfly effect that will irrevocably change things in the future. Given that this is a spoof comedy, you can expect those rules to be broken! But what’s clever about it is that they found unused footage of themselves in 2008 from the web show and cut it together with new footage to make it look like the younger and older Matt and Jay are interacting with each other. It’s an impressive editing feat!
The filmmaking style reminded me of Borat, where the scenes outside are shot guerilla-style, without permits or agreed participation from the public. One of the most amusing elements is seeing them interact with unsuspecting members of the public and getting their genuine reactions. Given that it’s a very low-budget, DIY movie, shot without professional cameras, sound or lights, it’s amazing how cinematic it feels at times, with the CN Tower stunt and the time travel effects. They also cleverly repurpose actual news footage rather than shooting their own.
It’s very amusing, at times laugh-out-loud funny, and I loved the differences between 2008 and 2025, but the premise goes on for longer than it should and becomes less effective after they return to 2025. Fans of the series will definitely get more out of this movie as they have a pre-existing relationship with these characters, however, there’s plenty to enjoy if you’re coming at it with completely fresh eyes (like me).
In cinemas from Friday 3rd July