In 'nirvanna The Band The Show The Movie,' Two Losers Turn Time Travel Into A Fame Machine

Whether you’re already connected nan wrong aliases caller to nan party, nan Canadian meta-comedy “Nirvanna nan Band nan Show nan Movie,” astir a euphony duo’s epic undiscoveredness, shows small assemblage favoritism arsenic it ping-pongs betwixt timelines, formats, realities, taste shout-outs and its 2 indefatigable lead characters. Make that 4 leads, since head and co-writer Matt Johnson and his composer-best friend Jay McCarrol each play themselves twice, acknowledgment to archival footage presented successful this zippy mockumentary arsenic grounds of clip travel.

Don’t beryllium confused. Or rather, beryllium confused but adventurously so! Especially if you aren’t acquainted pinch nan cult web bid from which this movie derives. Indie-savvy viewers mightiness cognize Johnson’s activity from nan moon-landing conspiracy lark “Operation Avalanche” aliases nan cheeky docu-dramedy “BlackBerry,” some of which he directed and acted in. But there’s nary getting astir nan truth that if you haven’t encountered them before, past for a bully while they’ll travel crossed arsenic Motormouth Clown successful a Fedora (Johnson) and Understated Guy astatine nan Piano (McCarrol).

With 3 Ns to their set sanction (no narration to a somewhat better-known group), a dream of booking Toronto’s longstanding unrecorded venue and only a cluttered suburban location to show for it, nan duo’s enactment seems chiefly to beryllium coming up pinch boneheaded ideas for exposure. Johnson’s latest bolt of inspiration is for them to parachute from nan apical of downtown Toronto’s 2,000-foot CN Tower into nan unfastened Rogers Centre stadium below, a scheme which meets pinch amusingly alarmed interest from a very existent worker astatine nan hardware store. It’s nan first of galore encounters pinch unsuspecting citizens, à la nan oeuvre of Sacha Baron Cohen.

Though their stunt fails — yet succeeds for america arsenic a portion of guerrilla filmmaking wizardry — it spurs Johnson toward an moreover crazier notion: clip walking successful an RV to 2008 to alteration their fates and unafraid their inevitable fame. Think “Back to nan Future” and deliberation astir it a lot, since from present connected out, that 1985 classical becomes this movie’s lodestar of structural, comedic and philharmonic reference. (McCarrol’s enjoyably overwrought orchestral people shouts retired to composer Alan Silvestri.)

That nan filmmakers could play against themselves utilizing video of nan 2008 versions of their characters (when they had nan web series) is undeniably clever, if not ever nan laughter riot it promises to be. But it besides helps foster nan jealousy-driven farce that takes complete nan current-day communicative and is genuinely funny: a rejiggered timeline successful which McCarrol becomes a monolithic popular prima and Johnson gets near behind.

Invariably these wacky scenarios will beryllium much amusing to longtime fans, for whom a frantic climax akin to nan lightning-meets-DeLorean ending of “Back to nan Future” will play for illustration nostalgia for nostalgia. To nan uninitiated, though, moreover amid dependable laughter and a sneaking interest for this silly relationship to correct itself, it whitethorn travel disconnected arsenic overmuch ado astir who knows what.

But Johnson is thing if not a punchy ringmaster of deadpan joke and his grab-bag mindset generates capable goodwill to admit nan DIY brashness of it all. I’m 1 of those who had nary hint of this act’s history and I’m reasonably definite I’d look guardant to “Nirvanna nan Band nan Show nan Movie nan Sequel.”