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Movie Review: 'Spinal Tap II: The End Continues'

Tap returns for a grand finale

Spinal Tap II: The End Continues
Bleeker Street
Spinal Tap II: The End Continues
SOURCE: Bleeker Street
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Updated: 2:07 PM CDT Sep 12, 2025
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Movie Review: 'Spinal Tap II: The End Continues'

Tap returns for a grand finale

vlog logo
Updated: 2:07 PM CDT Sep 12, 2025
Editorial Standards
For me, and most of my Gen X friends, there are many films from which we’ll randomly throw out quotes. It comes, of course, from being the generation raised during the era of video stores and the beginnings of cable TV. Some of the more popular to quote include Ghostbusters, Fletch, Airplane, Real Genius and The Princess Bride, among others.One of those others, one that contained a treasure trove of hilarious quotes for any occasion, was This is Spinal Tap. Rob Reiner, Christopher Guest, Michael McKean and Harry Shearer got together back in the early 1980s and came up with a concept that would eventually become Reiner’s first film as a director.Poking fun at rock & roll documentaries, This is Spinal Tap was an improvisational tour de force. It may not have been an original concept, with several other similar fake documentaries having come before, but it was definitely the one that put the word “mockumentary” squarely on the map.Over the decades since, Guest, McKean and Shearer, acting as Spinal Tap, have released two albums (not counting the film’s soundtrack), and Shearer, as his character Derek Smalls, released a solo album. Yet, it took forty-one years for Spinal Tap II: The End Continues to arrive in theaters.Marty Di Bergi (Reiner), the director of the original (in his words) rockumentary, decided to revisit the subject of that film, since he hasn’t been able to get any work in Hollywood since it was released. His idea is to see if he can find the band members, who haven’t spoken since the mid-2010s, get them to reunite and perform one last grand show.In the process, we discover what Nigel Tufnel (Guest), David St. Hubbins (McKean) and Derek Smalls have been up to since the last break up, then watch as they rehearse for the concert, try to find a new drummer and receive accolades from many famous musicians, all while still dealing with inner-band tensions.So, is Spinal Tap II as funny as the original? Not quite. Yet, for a legacy sequel, they pull it off fairly well. There’s a lot of funny bits and great lines, despite occasionally treading back over ground already covered.The group proves that their improv chops are still strong, kept exercised, of course, by Guest’s own directorial efforts. In addition, seeing the actual rock stars talking about the group is a real treat.If you are a Tap fan, Spinal Tap II hopefully won’t disappoint. It didn’t for me, though I’m not sure there are any lines we’ll still be quoting forty-plus years later.

For me, and most of my Gen X friends, there are many films from which we’ll randomly throw out quotes. It comes, of course, from being the generation raised during the era of video stores and the beginnings of cable TV. Some of the more popular to quote include Ghostbusters, Fletch, Airplane, Real Genius and The Princess Bride, among others.

One of those others, one that contained a treasure trove of hilarious quotes for any occasion, was This is Spinal Tap. Rob Reiner, Christopher Guest, Michael McKean and Harry Shearer got together back in the early 1980s and came up with a concept that would eventually become Reiner’s first film as a director.

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Poking fun at rock & roll documentaries, This is Spinal Tap was an improvisational tour de force. It may not have been an original concept, with several other similar fake documentaries having come before, but it was definitely the one that put the word “mockumentary” squarely on the map.

Over the decades since, Guest, McKean and Shearer, acting as Spinal Tap, have released two albums (not counting the film’s soundtrack), and Shearer, as his character Derek Smalls, released a solo album. Yet, it took forty-one years for Spinal Tap II: The End Continues to arrive in theaters.

Marty Di Bergi (Reiner), the director of the original (in his words) rockumentary, decided to revisit the subject of that film, since he hasn’t been able to get any work in Hollywood since it was released. His idea is to see if he can find the band members, who haven’t spoken since the mid-2010s, get them to reunite and perform one last grand show.

In the process, we discover what Nigel Tufnel (Guest), David St. Hubbins (McKean) and Derek Smalls have been up to since the last break up, then watch as they rehearse for the concert, try to find a new drummer and receive accolades from many famous musicians, all while still dealing with inner-band tensions.

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So, is Spinal Tap II as funny as the original? Not quite. Yet, for a legacy sequel, they pull it off fairly well. There’s a lot of funny bits and great lines, despite occasionally treading back over ground already covered.

The group proves that their improv chops are still strong, kept exercised, of course, by Guest’s own directorial efforts. In addition, seeing the actual rock stars talking about the group is a real treat.

If you are a Tap fan, Spinal Tap II hopefully won’t disappoint. It didn’t for me, though I’m not sure there are any lines we’ll still be quoting forty-plus years later.