Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie

‘What you are about to see is something you’ve never seen before,’ we're promised at the start of Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie. That may be true for some of us, but not for all: Nirvanna the Band the Show was actually a culty and beloved Canadian sitcom based on an early aughts web series – which has now, as advertised, been turned into a full-length movie… in the hopes of generating interest in another season of the sitcom, eight years after it ended.

Totally confused? Lean all the way in. There is little logic to be found in this cheerfully bananas mockumentary from Matt Johnson and Jay McCarrol, who have been playing the fictional Matt and Jay for nearly two decades. Their latest misadventure, deftly directed by Johnson and hilariously scripted by both, should by all rights break the world.

Like the series and sitcom, the movie follows two clueless friends determined to book a gig at Toronto’s famed Rivoli music club. Unfortunately, they don’t have a manager, an agent or much of a setlist.

What they do possess, besides a band name that causes infinite confusion, is a refusal to flag in the face of eternal rejection. Matt and Jay don’t spend much time on actual music, but they’re fully committed to hatching schemes. These run the spectrum from painfully misguided (parachute into a stadium, impress thousands of potential fans) to utterly insane (build a time machine, travel to the past, secure a booking for the future).

It’s easy to underestimate the intelligence it takes to make something so silly

To say more would ruin the fun. Taking equal inspiration from Impractical Jokers, Tenacious D, and Sacha Baron Cohen, Johnson and McCarrol run around Toronto recruiting unwitting, often unwilling, civilians. ‘I believe as a sane person, I should prevent you guys from doing shit like this,’ says one concerned bystander.

Because the movie’s on-the-fly style is as scruffy as its protagonists, it’s easy to underestimate the intelligence and artistry it takes to make something so silly. It is, therefore, worth noting that our stars also have other jobs. Most recently, Johnson co-wrote and directed 2023’s sharply witty BlackBerry, for which McCarrol composed the score.

But they dumb themselves down brilliantly. And right about now, a brilliantly big-hearted, feel-good comedy may be even more valuable than a Saturday night spot at the Rivoli.

In US theaters Fri Feb 13.