bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

sponsorType

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Mathew Scott

Tenacious D in the Pick of Destiny

Starring: Jack Black, Kyle Gass, J.R. Reed

Director: Liam Lynch

The film:  The brainchild of Jack Black and Kyle Gass, Tenacious D are the king of all rock bands. But they're not really. They're just two round  guys who spend  their time mocking and paying homage to the rock god ethos.

Pick of Destiny explains how the two rockers (below) met - and how they found the magic that, they say at least, has lifted them into the rock pantheon.

It begins with the young Black praying to a Ronnie James Dio poster and being told by the ageing rocker that he must search out a soulmate with whom he can conquer the rock world. Black heads off to Hollywood and finds Gass plying his trade on a street corner.

Only Black, it seems, can see the tubby, bald man's genius and together they  search  for the one thing that will give them an edge over their rock rivals - a guitar pick fashioned from the tooth of the devil.

Much of the humour - and there is plenty - comes from the straight-faced way the pair are in awe of themselves, even if the rest of the world might not see things the same way.

Cameos from the likes of Ben Stiller, Tim Robbins and the Foo Fighters' Dave Grohl (as the devil, who fancies Gass as a sex toy) add a little bit of class to a production that looks  as if it was  squeezed in between Black's  many other commitments.

It's pretty lightweight fare and you're left in little doubt that's the point of the whole exercise.

The extras: The two commentaries (one with the director, the other with the two stars) are at times funnier than the film, and there are fine moments in the featurette on the band in the studio and getting their act together. There are  14 deleted scenes, outtakes and an alternative ending.

The verdict: Not the epic many were expecting, but Black and Gass' enthusiasm for, and devotion to, their craft covers over many of the cracks.



Tenacious D in the Pick of Destiny