"This Is Spinal Tap is one of the funniest, most intelligent, most original films of the year. The satire has a deft, wicked touch. Spinal Tap is not that much worse than, not that much different from, some successful rock bands." - Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times, March 1984. Ebert listed the film as one of his Ten Best for the year.
"A satire of the documentary form itself, complete with perfectly faded clips from old TV shows of the band in its mod and flower-child incarnations." - David Ansen, Newsweek, 1984
"In a style reminiscent of Martin Scorsese's The Last Waltz [1978], Reiner does take-offs on practically every rock cliché there is, with often hilarious results." - Ira Hellman, People, 1984
"The most appealing thing about This Is Spinal Tap, aside from the obvious enthusiasm of all concerned, is the accompanying lack of condescension. Mr. Guest, in particular, does a wonderful job of capturing his character's sincere idiocy. Mr. McKean is also appealing as the group's most gullible member. ... And Mr. Shearer is quietly funny as the nondescript Tap member, the one who sees Nigel and David as 'fire' and 'ice' and thinks his own role is 'to be in the middle of that, like lukewarm water.'" - Janet Maslin, The New York Times, March 2, 1984
"For all its japes and jokes, the movie is really about exhaustion of the spirit: sitting in a bleak hotel suite at 4 a.m. with the bad taste of last night in the mouth and the feeling that tomorrow will not be a better day." - Richard Corliss, Time, March 5, 1984
"You almost can't blame its legions of faithful followers for memorizing huge chunks of it, and for turning many of its jokes (especially that bit about the amp) into permanent fixtures of rock 'n' roll vernacular. How else do you grab hold of This Is Spinal Tap, a parody that's so close to its target, so spot-on and elusive at the same time, that it almost–almost–isn't even funny? How is it that a heavy-metal spoof can be as light as a soap bubble?" - Stephanie Zacharek, Salon, September 8, 2000
"Reiner's [sic] brilliantly inventive script and smart visuals avoid all the obvious pitfalls, making this one of the funniest ever films about the music business." - Nigel Floyd, Time Out, 2000
Additionally, this film has received the following awards and/or honors:
This Is Spinal Tap did not receive any awards, but the 2000 DVD Special Edition release did win Best Audio Commentary at the DVD Exclusive Awards. It was also nominated for menu design and overall supplemental material.
In 2002, This Is Spinal Tap was deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" and selected for preservation in the Library of Congress National Film Registry.
Number 48 on the list of 500 Greatest Movies of All Time - Empire magazine, 2008
Best comedy film of all time - Time Out London, 2011
One of the 50 Greatest Comedies of All Time - Premiere magazine, 2006
Ranked #1 on Entertainment Weekly's Top 50 Cult Movies of All Time
Number 29 on the American Film Institute list of 100 best comedy films of all time
