Air Guitar Nation: Silent, but deadly.

Reviewer: Erin Donovan
Rating (out of 5): *½

For seven years the World Air Guitar training camp and championships existed in Finland as a meditative movement for peace focused on transforming the world through a communal perception change (no, really). Two American club promoters attended the camp in 2002 and upon realizing there was no American presence they spearheaded a US Air Guitar Championship to find the greatest to represent us on a world stage.

After the inaugural event was heavily plugged on the Howard Stern show, air guitar hopefuls (as well as people who just enjoy a good spectacle) came out in droves. And it's at this point when the brakes start squealing on any heady expectations of zen and the art of air guitar. This group consists of unemployed actors looking for non-traditional entrees into fame and disaffected, Brooklyn hipsters. In other words, the last people on Earth that need to be the focus of any 90 minute documentary that isn't about forcible organ donation. In Air Guitar Nation, their collective, ironic detachment is not helped by the fact that the film didn't secure licensing for most of the songs "played" so while we watch what would be pretty hilarious (after a few beers) performances we're only hearing voiceovers of these people trying to out-clever each other. And I probably don't need to tell you that if they had any gift for wit they wouldn't be there in the first place. A few choice nuggets: "Taking on a stage persona is a good way to create a barrier between you and the world, or you and your girlfriend." "Air guitar is probably less absurd than figure skating... if you think about it." Thanks for the share, guys.

And should anyone think I'm taking this so seriously that I'm missing the point, witness a scene (that goes uncommented on) where Korean-American contender C-Diddy is annointed champion after audience favorite Krye Tuff has lost. As he accepts his trophy the mostly white crowd boos and chants "U-S-A!" It's a good thing we're all so cool and liberal here folks, because otherwise this might resemble a Klan meeting.

Do I even need to even mention the guy who shows up in a wheelchair with a home-made t-shirt that reads "God Rocks"?

It should surprise no one that this director came from the world of reality television. Alexandra Lipsitz spends so much time amping up an imaginary conflict between two of the contestants (despite the fact that one of them clearly just doesn't have the chops) she breezes across a far more intriguing thread, that this movement that started out as a peace effort (no matter how half-baked) dominated by Americans the same year that we invaded Iraq and how these sort of doltish Americans navigate being both competitors and ambassadors in a time of worldwide disapproval.

Werner Herzog made great use of an inherently, foolishly unlikeable documentary protagonist in Grizzly Man by giving us enough context to begin to understand his initial motivations and eventual downfall. Air Guitar Nation is uninterested in anything of the sort; by the end of the film the rules of the competition seem way more confusing than they possibly could be: Is there a wild card spot? How does this guy who keeps losing in qualifying rounds wind up in the tournament? Is there actually ever an end to the journey for true airness?

There are a few redeeming moments: C Diddy's disapproving parents attending his concerts and eventual pride for their son is easy schmaltz but provides a great deal of relief as the only form of sincerety being offered; and when contestants shut up and actually "play" they can be genuinely stunning performers.

DVD extras include 40 minutes of deleted scenes, theatrical trailer and Docurama trailers.

See also: Metal: A Headbanger's Journey, Some Kind of Monster, American Dreamz, This is Spinal Tap, Tenacious D: Pick of Destiny, Spellbound, El Calentito.