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In the 41 years since This Is Spinal Tap was released, David St. Hubbins (Michael McKean), Nigel Tufnel (Christopher Guest), and Derek Smalls (Harry Shearer) have experienced no shortage of career highs and lows, playing major festivals before splitting up, seemingly for good, over a decade ago. However, the music industry loves a comeback story. So director Marty DiBergi (played by actual director Rob Reiner) is back to document the boys with Spinal Tap II: The End Continues, a movie covering the preparations for an epic reunion concert — one that could maybe heal the festering wounds that led to the band’s split in the first place.

Spinal Tap II is not exactly a movie you would describe as being plot-heavy. To say it has much in the way of forward momentum would be inaccurate — despite the countdown to their big show looming, there’s not much tension about whether they’ll make it to the stage or be a success. And yet it still stands out as a deeply enjoyable viewing experience, and a singular one: It’s a movie about older men looking back at their lives and the relationships that have defined them, in a way that’s only possible after at least five decades of real-life friendship.

That aforementioned lack of momentum doesn’t end up being too big an issue, largely because Spinal Tap II clocks in at 83 minutes (just a minute longer than the original). It’s just the right length, allowing us to leisurely enjoy the process of Marty visiting all three of the original band members: Since the band broke up, David’s developed a talent for writing and composing hold music, Derek got mixed up in some bad crypto business, and Nigel’s developed a real passion for cheese, opening his own cheese and guitars shop. (You can trade cheese for a guitar, or a guitar for some cheese. Nigel’s got a whole system for figuring it out.)

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Then, the trio eventually (and awkwardly) reunite in New Orleans to prepare for the big show, which involves finding a new keyboardist (C. J. Vanston, a longtime real-life collaborator of Guest’s) — and of course, a new drummer. That’s the band’s toughest challenge in the early stages, given how we learn early on in the movie that Spinal Tap’s grand total of deceased drummers now goes to 11 (seriously!).

This leads to a Zoom-powered merry-go-round moment where Questlove, Chad Smith from Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Lars Ulrich all pass on the gig (all three men demonstrating some solid chops when it comes to deadpan delivery), followed by the discovery of Didi Crockett (Valerie Franco), who fucking slays, frankly — thanks to both her incredible drumming skills and her positive attitude.

Franco’s not given a lot of heavy-duty comedy to perform, but as Didi, she brings such joy and energy to the screen, while also bashing the drums like they were responsible for overturning Roe v. Wade. Her credits in real life include performing with artists like Halsey and Kylie Minogue and doing a week-long fill-in gig for Fred Armisen on The Late Show with Seth Meyers. In a just world, Spinal Tap II will break her out in a huge way.

There have been enough legacy sequels like this for us all to be familiar with their traps and pitfalls, which Spinal Tap II largely manages to avoid. The biggest potential concern I had as a viewer was watching the movie attempt to get anywhere close to recapturing the iconic, culture-shifting magic of “This one goes to 11,” a mountain the movie thankfully does not try to summit.

That being said, there is an intimate interview sequence between Nigel and Marty with a deeply silly reveal that had me giggling for many minutes. No catchphrases emerge from it, but that doesn’t negate the power of two legendary comedic talents reminding us all how skilled they are at playing a moment. It’s one of many delightful beats played out for just the right amount of time, escalated with laser-sharp precision.

The music still rocks, too, with new tracks like “Rockin’ In the Urn” proving as catchy as they are funny. Okay, “Hell Toupee” might fall more into the category of silliness, but “Let’s Just Rock Again,” “The Devil’s Just Not Getting Old,” and even little improvised ditties like “NOLA House Song” reaffirm that Guest, McKean, and Shearer’s musical talents have not faded with age.

As for the real-life musicians who appear as themselves in the movie, Spinal Tap II proves the power of quality over quantity. Rather than share the screen (and pad the screen time) with countless appearances from famous folk who would undoubtedly be honored to make a cameo, the movie gives us a glorious extended sequence in which Paul McCartney sits in on a studio session with the lads — much to David’s annoyance — even jamming on “Cups and Cakes” with them. (“Cups and Cakes” being one of two songs from the original This Is Spinal Tap album to not be featured in the first movie.)

Spinal Tap II: The End Continues (Bleeker Street)

Also, no spoilers for what happens with him, but Elton John’s role in the film is also larger than anticipated. Most importantly, he proves exceptionally game for committing fully to the concept of Spinal Tap being a real band, one he’s honored to play with.

It all builds to a point, towards the later half of the movie, where it all started to feel so overwhelmingly real. Without question, McKean, Shearer, and Guest are all playing fictional characters in a fictional band — but when they’re improvising both musically and comedically in character with real-life rock stars, after decades of playing together as these characters… It almost feels like slipping into another universe.

It’s a feeling enhanced by the way that Reiner leans hard into documentary technique for a lot of the filming, especially during the climatic concert: You can see the many cameras on stage capturing the performances from different angles, with band members occasionally looking directly into the lens as they wail on guitar, just like they did in the 1984 film. Maybe it’s the fact that when the band’s music is that good, it makes the band itself feel genuine. The magic Pinocchio was looking for the whole time.

But another factor could be that Spinal Tap II holds onto the real sense that these men, despite everything they’ve been through, have loved each other almost their entire lives. Guest and McKean in particular met in college in the late 1960s, and they’ve been playing music together ever since; there’s something beautiful about the fact that they’ve found their way to this moment, after so many decades — one where the only laughter they care about is each other’s. The audience laughing as well? That’s just a bonus. It’s also happily guaranteed.

Spinal Tap II: The End Continues rocks its way into theaters on September 12th. Check out the trailer below.