Nirvanna the Band the Show The Movie is the feature-length spin-off of the abruptly cancelled, Vice-produced television series; which initially grew from the online brainchild of director Matt Johnson (The Dirties, Operation Avalanche, BlackBerry) and musician/composer Jay McCarrol (The Kid Detective). Just like their former antics on TV, Johnson and McCarrol take big swings with their movie: they’re attempting to project a niche property into the mainstream and hoping the general public will ride along, while also approaching the longer narrative with limitless aspirations for stunts, while also attempting to pull off a presumably challenging genre and pay homage to their nostalgia influences and the city of Toronto. To say making this movie was an undertaking would be phrasing it mildly, and to say the film is a success would be true with some reservations.

The film adapts the same handheld shooting style and pace, including their usual undercover tactics to tape scenes in public places; allowing strangers to show concern towards the plot and, sometimes, redirect the narrative. However, Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie splurges on additional special effects and flawless editing to allow Matt and Jay (playing heightened version of themselves) to enter the realm of science fiction through time travel. Following the blueprints provided by Back to the Future and its futuristic sequel, Matt and Jay accidentally leap backwards to 2008 and carefully brainstorm how to return to present day without disrupting the timeline. An inevitable rift occurs (both in the space-time continuum and in their friendship), which drastically changes the lives and careers for Matt and Jay.

As someone who has been impressed by Johnson’s renegade indie efforts in the past and has also been a victim of doubling-over while watching Nirvanna the Band the Show, I saw the movie as two halves: an exercise in reinventing guerrilla filmmaking and a Torontonian buddy comedy. Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie rapidly lobs amusing concepts and deliveries towards the audience, but the jokes are predictable. Take the moviegoing gag that reveals the time travel mishap to Matt during a screening of The Hangover. This is clever, but the punchline can be easily anticipated for anyone who has seen Todd Phillips’ flick. There are also jokes and references that feel as though their in-jokes for the production (anytime an Orbitz beverage is mentioned, for instance), whereas the audience was included more in former incarnations of Nirvanna the Band.

Also, for a film that boasts itself as being in touch with Toronto, Johnson’s movie is a bit of a poser. The production could make a case that they capture the essence of the city, but the filmmakers seem to be going for a larger goal. The movie has a strong start featuring a hilarious, envelope-pushing stunt that works in the CN Tower as a plot point, which is then circled back during a wild finale when Matt and Jay try to travel back to present day. Otherwise, Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie merely shows recognizable locations and waits for its audience to point and lap it up in a Pavlovian manner. Johnson and his crew are wittier than this. Maybe I expect more because the film’s press tour has been filled with interviews from Matt and Jay citing their favourite locations around Toronto. Wouldn’t these guys, steeped in nostalgia from the city they love, want to procrastinate and check out these places while they casually plan their escape from 2008? Maybe my slight disappointment comes from other comparable examples. Boxcutter, another recent “Toronto flick”, does a better job juxtaposing the city’s hot (and infamous) spots to be funny and faithful to Toronto-living. Boxcutter has a joke about the Queen and Spadina McDonalds – Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie just shows you a picture.

However, the movie does an incredible job on its technical flourishes. Recent takes of the would-be musicians are integrated very well when establishing a city of the past, and the overlapping footage where Matt and Jay embark on their time-leaping mission while trying not to interrupt their past selves (even having conversations with themselves) is beautifully cut together. The timelines featured in the movie are fleshed out and feel like they exist on their own due to the doctored footage that help personalize the alternate realities and the crowd scenes featuring more unsuspecting and confused strangers. There’s a reason why Matt Johnson, humbly, pays gratitude on the press circuit to his editors, Curt Lobb and Robert Upchurch, for this ingenious project.

Matt Johnson and Jay McCarrol have been funnier (and less sappy) than they are in Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie. But, the film features the duo at the height of their inspirational innovation as they re-write sub-genres and rewire modern independent cinema as we know it.

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Addison Wylie: @AddisonWylie