Post by McKenna on Jul 9, 2004 22:49:26 GMT 1
Last Updated: Friday, 9 July, 2004, 13:00 GMT 14:00 UK
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Review: Some Kind of Monster
By Rob Winder
BBC News Online
Metallica rehearse their most recent album, St Anger
The award-winning documentary Metallica: Some Kind of Monster finds the thrash-metal stars all grown-up and in "touchy-feely" mode, as they try to interpret their feelings about the band after twenty years together.
It focuses on the rock band over an enlightening year, as they try to pick themselves up following a particularly troubled period.
By 2001, the legendary thrash-metal pioneers had reached breaking point.
Bassist Jason Newstead had left the band, and frontman James Hetfield was being treated for alcoholism at a rehabilitation centre.
The group also faced a fan backlash after launching a legal action against MP3-sharing service, Napster.
Rehearsals for an 11th album had ground to a halt.
Things had got so bad that the band had hired a therapist to help them overcome their "issues".
'Alcoholica'
Some Kind of Monster documents the therapy process as Metallica struggle to produce their new album and recruit a new bass player.
However, fans expecting to see the hard-partying that left the band dubbed 'Alcoholica' will be disappointed.
Family members are drafted in as Phil, the Frasier Crane-style therapist, attempts to unravel the tension between founder members Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich.
Even former guitarist Dave Mustaine joins in the sessions, despite having been sacked in 1983.
Metallica were the undisputed kings of thrash-metal throughout the 80s and 90s, selling 12 million concert tickets in North America alone.
That status has been challenged in recent years, following the rise of nu-metal acts like Slipknot and Korn.
Guitarist Kirk Hammet provides the films 'Spinal Tap' moments.
It is intriguing to witness how a band at the top of their genre put their music together, and how they stay motivated after 20 years.
But, it would have been nice to see more of the undeniable impact of their music on fans and contemporaries.
Following
Instead, we get to spend more than two hours with three grumpy, middle-aged, very rich men.
Film-makers Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky have a mixed track record.
Paradise Lost, their 1996 documentary on the conviction of three Memphis teenagers for the murders of three eight-year-old boys, was critically acclaimed.
However, Berlinger's Blair Witch 2, a sequel to the horror classic, was panned on its release.
Now, they have produced a film for serious Metallica fans, who will be fascinated by the inner workings of the group.
With the band having sold more than 90 million albums worldwide, those fans are not in short supply.
Others will be asking, "'who cares?", as the film contains little for those who are not followers of the band.
Metallica can be praised for really opening up in this film, but, unfortunately, there is very little to reveal.
Metallica: Some Kind of Monster opens in the US on 9 July.
credit bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment
E-mail this to a friend Printable version
Review: Some Kind of Monster
By Rob Winder
BBC News Online
Metallica rehearse their most recent album, St Anger
The award-winning documentary Metallica: Some Kind of Monster finds the thrash-metal stars all grown-up and in "touchy-feely" mode, as they try to interpret their feelings about the band after twenty years together.
It focuses on the rock band over an enlightening year, as they try to pick themselves up following a particularly troubled period.
By 2001, the legendary thrash-metal pioneers had reached breaking point.
Bassist Jason Newstead had left the band, and frontman James Hetfield was being treated for alcoholism at a rehabilitation centre.
The group also faced a fan backlash after launching a legal action against MP3-sharing service, Napster.
Rehearsals for an 11th album had ground to a halt.
Things had got so bad that the band had hired a therapist to help them overcome their "issues".
'Alcoholica'
Some Kind of Monster documents the therapy process as Metallica struggle to produce their new album and recruit a new bass player.
However, fans expecting to see the hard-partying that left the band dubbed 'Alcoholica' will be disappointed.
Family members are drafted in as Phil, the Frasier Crane-style therapist, attempts to unravel the tension between founder members Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich.
Even former guitarist Dave Mustaine joins in the sessions, despite having been sacked in 1983.
Metallica were the undisputed kings of thrash-metal throughout the 80s and 90s, selling 12 million concert tickets in North America alone.
That status has been challenged in recent years, following the rise of nu-metal acts like Slipknot and Korn.
Guitarist Kirk Hammet provides the films 'Spinal Tap' moments.
It is intriguing to witness how a band at the top of their genre put their music together, and how they stay motivated after 20 years.
But, it would have been nice to see more of the undeniable impact of their music on fans and contemporaries.
Following
Instead, we get to spend more than two hours with three grumpy, middle-aged, very rich men.
Film-makers Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky have a mixed track record.
Paradise Lost, their 1996 documentary on the conviction of three Memphis teenagers for the murders of three eight-year-old boys, was critically acclaimed.
However, Berlinger's Blair Witch 2, a sequel to the horror classic, was panned on its release.
Now, they have produced a film for serious Metallica fans, who will be fascinated by the inner workings of the group.
With the band having sold more than 90 million albums worldwide, those fans are not in short supply.
Others will be asking, "'who cares?", as the film contains little for those who are not followers of the band.
Metallica can be praised for really opening up in this film, but, unfortunately, there is very little to reveal.
Metallica: Some Kind of Monster opens in the US on 9 July.
credit bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment
