This Is Spinal Tap

[eclipsedmoongoddess482]

Okay, I know This is Spinal Tap is really a movie but its also all about the music so I think its more appropriate for a rock movie to be in the Music thread, right?

Anyway, I'm not allowed to watch this movie due to my parents protests so I have to wait till I'm in college to watch it. <_< But I've heard there are some funny ass moments in there. Can anyone describe these scenes in detail? If you have the time that is. I only heard of a few like the tiny hedgestones and the band getting lost backstage but I keep hearing people quoting "This goes to 11..." and I don't know what they're talking about. Can anyone help a restrained rock fan?
_________________
Vaccum cleaners may look fun, but are deadly sex toys. as are certain vegetables like, terri schiavo -Powtaz

[fallenangel]

Oh god, you're asking me to describe practically the whole movie! It's all gold... But here's some good parts that are still funny without having to hear them. Some are all in the delivery. Here's a quick summary of who all the people are.

[b]Marty DiBergi[/b] - The documentary film maker. He's the one following the band around. He's very serious, in that he's always the straight man, asking "normal" questions, to which the band gives hilarious answers.
[b]David St. Hubbins[/b] - Singer and "lead guitar" (both he and Nigel are credited as "lead guitar"). He's the typical ego-driven frontman. Boyhood friends with Nigel.
[b]Nigel Tufnel[/b] - Lead guitarist, and my favorite character. He's adorable in the goofy, stupid way. Not the sharpest tool in the shed, but lovable all the same.
[b]Derek Smalls[/b] - Bassist. He's sorta the parody of "normal" band members who aren't loud and flashy. He's not in your face like Nigel and David, but he's got some great parts of his own.
[b]Ian Faith[/b] - Their tour manager. Just tryin' to get them on stage.

Ok then, good parts...

So, the Stonehenge scene you've already heard about goes as such. They're all sitting in a diner trying to figure out how to increase attendance at their shows. Nigel suggests Stonehenge and draws a diagram of the set on a napkin. He means for it to say 18 feet, but instead labels it 18". The set builder shows up to Ian with what he thinks is a scale model, but when he asks if the full size thing will be exactly like it, the builder says "...this is it". So they go ahead and do the show with the tiny prop, which the band hasn't seen until it lowers down in the middle of the song and is being danced around by midgets. Afterwards, Ian quits.
Ian: Nigel gave me a drawing that said 18 inches. Now, whether or not he knows the difference between feet and inches is not my problem. I do what I'm told.
David: But you're not as confused as him, are you? I mean, it's not your job to be as confused as Nigel.

David: I do not, for one, think that the problem was that the band was down. I think that the problem [i]may[/i] have been, that there was a Stonehenge monument on the stage that was in danger of being [i]crushed[/i] by a [i]dwarf[/i]. Alright? That tended to understate the hugeness of the object.
Ian: I really think you're just making much too big a thing out of it.
David: Making a big thing out of it would have been a good idea.

There's a lot of clips that don't directly relate to the story but are part of it as a "documentary". In one scene, Nigel is playing a soft piano piece for Marty.
Marty: It's very pretty.
Nigel: Yeah, I've been fooling around with it for a few months.
Marty: It's a bit of a departure from what you normally play.
Nigel: It's part of a trilogy, a musical trilogy I'm working on in D minor which is the saddest of all keys, I find. People weep instantly when they hear it, and I don't know why.
Marty: It's very nice.
Nigel: You know, just simple lines intertwining, you know, very much like - I'm really influenced by Mozart and Bach, and it's sort of in between those, really. It's like a Mach piece, really. It's sort of...
Marty: What do you call this?
Nigel: Well, this piece is called "Lick My Love Pump".

There's some really good ones where Marty is reading various reviews of the band's albums.
"This pretentious ponderous collection of religious rock psalms is enough to prompt the question, 'What day did the Lord create Spinal Tap, and couldn't he have rested on that day too?'"
"The review for "Shark Sandwich" was merely a two word review which simply read "s**t Sandwich". "
Marty: "This tasteless cover is a good indication of the lack of musical invention within. The musical growth of this band cannot even be charted. They are treading water in a sea of retarded sexuality and bad poetry."
Nigel: That's just nitpicking, isn't it?

There's a part where Marty is talking to Nigel, who is wearing a black tanktop with a neon green skeleton on it (spine, ribs, etc.). It's a lot funnier to hear Nigel say these lines, but you get the idea.
Nigel: You like this?
Marty: It's very nice. It looks like hollow wood.
Nigel: This is my exact inner structure, done in a tee shirt. Exactly medically accurate. See?
Marty: So in other words if we were to take all your flesh and blood...
Nigel: Take them off. This is what you'd see.
Marty: It wouldn't be green though.
[points at Marty]
Nigel: It is green. You see how your blood looks blue.
Marty: Yeah, well that's just the vein. That's the color of the vein. The blood is actually red.
Nigel: Oh then, maybe it's not green. Anyway this is what I sleep in sometimes.

Derek reflecting on his history in rock:
Marty: Do you feel that playing rock 'n' roll music keeps you a child? That is, keeps you in a state of arrested development?
Derek: No. No. No. I feel it's like, it's more like going, going to a, a national park or something. And there's, you know, they preserve the moose. And that's, that's my childhood up there on stage. That moose, you know.
Marty: So when you're playing you feel like a preserved moose on stage?
Derek: Yeah.

One of my favorite lines of the entire movie. Nigel is talking about their impressive bulges. "We've got armadillos in our trousers. It's really quite frightening."

And the infamous "these go to 11" line. Nigel is showing Marty their amps, all of which have dials that go to 11.
Nigel: The numbers all go to eleven. Look, right across the board, eleven, eleven, eleven and...
Marty: Oh, I see. And most amps go up to ten?
Nigel: Exactly.
Marty: Does that mean it's louder? Is it any louder?
Nigel: Well, it's one louder, isn't it? It's not ten. You see, most blokes, you know, will be playing at ten. You're on ten here, all the way up, all the way up, all the way up, you're on ten on your guitar. Where can you go from there? Where?
Martyi: I don't know.
Nigel: Nowhere. Exactly. What we do is, if we need that extra push over the cliff, you know what we do?
Marty: Put it up to eleven.
Nigel: Eleven. Exactly. One louder.
Marty: Why don't you just make ten louder and make ten be the top number and make that a little louder?
Nigel: [pause] These go to eleven.

One of the recurring gags is that their drummers keep dying. A couple from spontaneous combustion during the course of the movie. And other past drummers in a variety of...unusual ways.

The original album cover they want for their new album, "Smell The Glove", was a naked woman on her hands and knees with a leather glove being thrust in her face. The record company rejects it for being sexist.
Nigel: What's wrong with being sexy?
David: sexIST, sexIST.

So the record label gives them their approved cover, which is just all black. No band name, no title, just a plain black vinyl record sleeve. They get the box of them and are standing around looking at it.
Nigel: It's like, how much more black could this be? And the answer is none. None more black.

They do an in store, and only one guy shows up. They sign his record with black permanent markers, and he gives them this "what the hell?" look. So they proceed to try and show him how to see the signatures by tilting it in the light.

There's so much more. It's all great. And it really doesn't "promote" the sex, drugs, n' rock n' roll lifestyle nearly as much as some other movies do. It's not even as "bad" as Decline Of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years. There's really not even any drug use in it. And barely any girls. A little bit of language, but that's about it.
_________________
"I care about people as much as I care about lawn furniture" - Dexter/Michael C. Hall

[Beatlechick90]

"We've got armadillos in our pants. It's quite frightening, really."
_________________
[url=http://dollyrockersinc.piczo.com][img]http://pic.piczo.com/img/i122379787_59088_3.gif[/img][/url]

[Tulips_and_Chimneys]

"I think it would sound better in doubly"

[fallenangel]

Er...she'll have no idea what you're saying if you don't set it up, since she hasn't seen the movie.

The armadillo one is up in my list, but the Dubly lines aren't.
_________________
"I care about people as much as I care about lawn furniture" - Dexter/Michael C. Hall

[eclipsedmoongoddess482]

[quote] Oh god, you're asking me to describe practically the whole movie! It's all gold...  But here's some good parts that are still funny without having to hear them. Some are all in the delivery. Here's a quick summary of who all the people are.

Marty DiBergi - The documentary film maker. He's the one following the band around. He's very serious, in that he's always the straight man, asking "normal" questions, to which the band gives hilarious answers.
David St. Hubbins - Singer and "lead guitar" (both he and Nigel are credited as "lead guitar"). He's the typical ego-driven frontman. Boyhood friends with Nigel.
Nigel Tufnel - Lead guitarist, and my favorite character. He's adorable in the goofy, stupid way. Not the sharpest tool in the shed, but lovable all the same.
Derek Smalls - Bassist. He's sorta the parody of "normal" band members who aren't loud and flashy. He's not in your face like Nigel and David, but he's got some great parts of his own.
Ian Faith - Their tour manager. Just tryin' to get them on stage.

Ok then, good parts...

So, the Stonehenge scene you've already heard about goes as such. They're all sitting in a diner trying to figure out how to increase attendance at their shows. Nigel suggests Stonehenge and draws a diagram of the set on a napkin. He means for it to say 18 feet, but instead labels it 18". The set builder shows up to Ian with what he thinks is a scale model, but when he asks if the full size thing will be exactly like it, the builder says "...this is it". So they go ahead and do the show with the tiny prop, which the band hasn't seen until it lowers down in the middle of the song and is being danced around by midgets. Afterwards, Ian quits.
Ian: Nigel gave me a drawing that said 18 inches. Now, whether or not he knows the difference between feet and inches is not my problem. I do what I'm told.
David: But you're not as confused as him, are you? I mean, it's not your job to be as confused as Nigel.

David: I do not, for one, think that the problem was that the band was down. I think that the problem may have been, that there was a Stonehenge monument on the stage that was in danger of being crushed by a dwarf. Alright? That tended to understate the hugeness of the object.
Ian: I really think you're just making much too big a thing out of it.
David: Making a big thing out of it would have been a good idea.

There's a lot of clips that don't directly relate to the story but are part of it as a "documentary". In one scene, Nigel is playing a soft piano piece for Marty.
Marty: It's very pretty.
Nigel: Yeah, I've been fooling around with it for a few months.
Marty: It's a bit of a departure from what you normally play.
Nigel: It's part of a trilogy, a musical trilogy I'm working on in D minor which is the saddest of all keys, I find. People weep instantly when they hear it, and I don't know why.
Marty: It's very nice.
Nigel: You know, just simple lines intertwining, you know, very much like - I'm really influenced by Mozart and Bach, and it's sort of in between those, really. It's like a Mach piece, really. It's sort of...
Marty: What do you call this?
Nigel: Well, this piece is called "Lick My Love Pump".

There's some really good ones where Marty is reading various reviews of the band's albums.
"This pretentious ponderous collection of religious rock psalms is enough to prompt the question, 'What day did the Lord create Spinal Tap, and couldn't he have rested on that day too?'"
"The review for "Shark Sandwich" was merely a two word review which simply read "s**t Sandwich". "
Marty: "This          cover is a good indication of the lack of musical invention within. The musical growth of this band cannot even be charted. They are treading water in a sea of retarded sexuality and bad poetry."
Nigel: That's just nitpicking, isn't it?

There's a part where Marty is talking to Nigel, who is wearing a black tanktop with a neon green skeleton on it (spine, ribs, etc.). It's a lot funnier to hear Nigel say these lines, but you get the idea.
Nigel: You like this?
Marty: It's very nice. It looks like hollow wood.
Nigel: This is my exact inner structure, done in a tee shirt. Exactly medically accurate. See?
Marty: So in other words if we were to take all your flesh and blood...
Nigel: Take them off. This is what you'd see.
Marty: It wouldn't be green though.
[points at Marty]
Nigel: It is green. You see how your blood looks blue.
Marty: Yeah, well that's just the vein. That's the color of the vein. The blood is actually red.
Nigel: Oh then, maybe it's not green. Anyway this is what I sleep in sometimes.

Derek reflecting on his history in rock:
Marty: Do you feel that playing rock 'n' roll music keeps you a child? That is, keeps you in a state of arrested development?
Derek: No. No. No. I feel it's like, it's more like going, going to a, a national park or something. And there's, you know, they preserve the moose. And that's, that's my childhood up there on stage. That moose, you know.
Marty: So when you're playing you feel like a preserved moose on stage?
Derek: Yeah.

One of my favorite lines of the entire movie. Nigel is talking about their impressive bulges. "We've got armadillos in our trousers. It's really quite frightening."

And the infamous "these go to 11" line. Nigel is showing Marty their amps, all of which have dials that go to 11.
Nigel: The numbers all go to eleven. Look, right across the board, eleven, eleven, eleven and...
Marty: Oh, I see. And most amps go up to ten?
Nigel: Exactly.
Marty: Does that mean it's louder? Is it any louder?
Nigel: Well, it's one louder, isn't it? It's not ten. You see, most blokes, you know, will be playing at ten. You're on ten here, all the way up, all the way up, all the way up, you're on ten on your guitar. Where can you go from there? Where?
Martyi: I don't know.
Nigel: Nowhere. Exactly. What we do is, if we need that extra push over the cliff, you know what we do?
Marty: Put it up to eleven.
Nigel: Eleven. Exactly. One louder.
Marty: Why don't you just make ten louder and make ten be the top number and make that a little louder?
Nigel: [pause] These go to eleven.

One of the recurring gags is that their drummers keep dying. A couple from spontaneous combustion during the course of the movie. And other past drummers in a variety of...unusual ways.

The original album cover they want for their new album, "Smell The Glove", was a            on her hands and knees with a leather glove being thrust in her face. The record company rejects it for being sexist.
Nigel: What's wrong with being sexy?
David: sexIST, sexIST.

So the record label gives them their approved cover, which is just all black. No band name, no title, just a plain black vinyl record sleeve. They get the box of them and are standing around looking at it.
Nigel: It's like, how much more black could this be? And the answer is none. None more black.

They do an in store, and only one guy shows up. They sign his record with black permanent markers, and he gives them this "what the hell?" look. So they proceed to try and show him how to see the signatures by tilting it in the light.

There's so much more. It's all great. And it really doesn't "promote" the sex, drugs, n' rock n' roll lifestyle nearly as much as some other movies do. It's not even as "bad" as Decline Of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years. There's really not even any drug use in it. And barely any girls. A little bit of language, but that's about it.  [/quote]


*Falls out of the chair laughing* Damn that movie sounds so damn funny. But they all sound like they're British...in my head they did. I love movie where the main characters are dumbasses. It just makes the movie that much better. ^_^ Another scene my friend told me about was when the band was in these pods for a theatric effect and one of the band members got stuck in the pods. Was that another drummer?

And yeah, if anyone can remember what the quotes mean then it would be awesome if you could explain them. ^_^ That "sounds better in doubly" is probably hilarious but I don't know what its supposed to mean.

And thank you so much fallen. This means a lot. Thanks!
_________________
Vaccum cleaners may look fun, but are deadly sex toys. as are certain vegetables like, terri schiavo -Powtaz

[fallenangel]

They are British. David on stage: "We're Spinal Tap from the UK! You must be the USA!"

The pod scene is really great, too. Derek is the one who gets stuck. David and Nigel come out and are singing the song while Derek is stuck in the pod with a "what the hell, get me out of here!" look on his face. One of the roadiest tries all these different ways to get him out and finally succeeds just in time for him to burst out as Nigel and David are going back in at the end of the song. So he tries to rush back in, and it closes on his arm.

The "Dubly" scene is in a diner. David's girlfriend is sharing her ideas for the band. She says "You don't do heavy metal in Dubly, you know." Nigel interrupts her and says "Wait, what? Dubly?" David: "She means Dolby." Then later on Nigel says "I think it would sound better in Dubly". (He and David's girlfriend have a huge rivalry, as any good band must)
_________________
"I care about people as much as I care about lawn furniture" - Dexter/Michael C. Hall