Customer Reviews
The rise and fall & getting up again with a few cuts and bruises, of "Metllica" - By: M. P. Williamson, 23 Aug 2008 
Starting out as a simple "fly on the wall" behind the scenes on the new album, based around the interesting position the band found themselves in, starting anew without a bassist. However, when James Hetfield takes a stintin rehab & finds a new found love for his family - replacing vodka & bear hunting with playing with his son, his dog & some headphones, & taking his daughter to ballet.
The film is a compelling balance; incredibly funny, insightful & deceptively moving all rolled into one. Whether it has an almost satirical look into the musical world (see the scene where Lars is found stewingin his anger - not that that narrows it down - as they then jot down lyrics for Frantic) or a somewhat moving inspection of life after drug - of all forms & formats - abuse.
Despite a running length of two-and-a-half hours, when first introduced to the film, courtesy of a friend at college, i found myself instantly flickign through all of the deleted scenes, & band commentary track, just to quench my thirst for more!
I have now seen the film several times since then, & the film STILL holds upin all the right places & never once feels its full run-length. The film has since broke into my top ten films of all time; alongside Death Becomes Her, Dogma, Moulin Rouge, Sixth Sense, & others.
Spinal Tap, you know, was meant to be funny. This is funny, but for all the wrong reasons. - By: Mr. M. A. Reed, 14 Aug 2008 Perhaps it's intentional, but watching three cosseted multi-millionaires riding bikes, going to their daughters ballet classes, selling off their art collections, (Ulrich toasts himself as one of them sells for $5,000,000), riding horses on ranches, & talking about themselvesin Group Therapy, you can't help but feel ridiculed. Here these three stupendously wealthy morons chow down on cheeseburgers, try to intellectualise their actions, talking about re-connecting with each other, & indulgein the kind of group therapy sessions that simply have the rational part of the viewer muttering at the screen.
Every movie must have it's bad guy, & Phil Towne, the band's Group performance Coach (shrink, to you & me), is their silver tongued Rasputin, charming the group with distressingly vague statements such as "I appreciate your anger" & "What do you mean by that statement?", getting them to take apart everything & reassemble itin a wasteland of self-indulgent psychobabble. As he parades aroundin his collection of increasingly atrocious jumpers, the balding spin-doctor offers the group his dreadful lyrical ideas, ackonwledges his sacking with "I appreciate your statements, but don't you think we need to explore your feelings?", & worst of all writes a Metallica Mission Statement ...
"We have experienced & understood - now we must share...." It starts. The rest of it I could barely make outin a sea of astounded guffaws at the absurdity of it all.
In the meantime, "Some Kind Of Monster" lifts the lid & exposes the psyche of self-obssessed millionaires, so far removed from the business of being alive that they have lost their plot amongst navel-gazing self-analysis, ignorant intellectual groping, & occasionally an attempt to forge some music. As a rock film, there is no comapre :it's a brave & intriguing expose of the kind of irrelvant, cushioned world that millionaire rock stars livein that is simultaneously ridiculous & compelling.
The music is easily the most intruiging thing about the film. The band are seen grappling with writing new songs for the first timein seven years, as they lambast each other for bringing forth dull riffs. At one point Lars ends up going crazy & screaming "Do I have to write it down for you?" as Jaymz pulls forth another mediocre chord progression. Kirk meanwhile, sitsin the middle & says nothing. He barely utter a word throughout the whole movie. The band are seen grappling with multiple versions of a song called "Temptation" that is the sound of museless millionaires fumblingin the dark, & the coupe de grace sees Lars father, a grizzled old Viking, listening to the new material - a shadowy, wordless, tuneless rumble of drums & echoey vocals - & tearing it to shreds. "It sounds like a bunch of kids who just found an echo machine" he says, as Lars looks suicidal. Like the advert : it's priceless.
Having quit the group for eight months, James finally returnsin a rigourous, post rehab world of four hour days, & regimented creativity. The rest of the band rage against the fact that if it's after 4pm they can't listen to the song they're working on, & Lars is seen running around shouting obscenitiesin a moment of priceless frustration. By the end of the film, as the recording process crawls towards day 720, & numerous bassists are auditionedin a series of hopeless trials, the overall impression is relatively simple. Metallica are brave enough to show their heads above the parapet & expose their weakness. "Some Kind Of Monster" is the greatest rock movie ever made : no puffpiece like `Rattle And Hum', it mercilessly shows a bunch of multimillionaires far removed from reality trying to work out why they do what they do, driving stupid cars, & showing them for the indulged idiots that they often are. You don't even have to be a fan to know that this is absolutely essential viewing. Here's hoping for Puff Daddy : The Movie.
Very good documentary of metallica - By: MrMetalheadO'Hagan, 13 Jul 2008 
I got this for my birthday this year & tis interesting to watch. How the band cope during the recording of st. anger(which was awesome). Lars's meeting with mustainein particulary was interesting as i am a fan of both bands. Overall a great documentary of metallica show the bad poins of metallica & the great points. Though people who keep saying this isnt just for metallica it's for fans of rock music i totally disagree, i'd only recommend this for metallica or people who have a general interestin metallica or who have the album st. anger. So overall good buy for metallica fans. Cant wait to see 'em live & for their new album.
Feelings laid bare makes for uncomfortable yet compelling viewing - By: theone&only, 12 Mar 2008 Bit of a curveball this one. Upon release the film did not transcend the heavy metal barrier & appealed only to metallica fans & it's not hard to see why. If the band thought it would be a film everyone could enjoy about relationships then they were definately suckeredin by their psycho-babble therapist. Thats not to say it's a bad film though. Metallica fans will love this - loads of great behind the scenes stuff, Jason Newsted's (ex-bassist) side of things, a meeting with the ginger whinger Dave Mustaine & of course plenty of Lars Ulrich's ridiculous egocentric tantrums. James Hetfield, usually a level headed, hard as nails, unstoppable frontman is revealed a bit too much, especially when he gushes about how his therapist is an "angel sent to help". Oh, the horror of it all. But if you can stick through cringeworthy moments like that you'll come to realise that Metallica must have balls of steel to reveal such moments to the public which is what it's all about & makes it all the more compelling. Watch it if you dare & see the real insides of the legendary band.
7.8/10 -not bad - By: David Mills, 11 Mar 2008 Not bad at all, shows you a bandin the making of an album who've been retired a couple of years, getting back on track. Metallica is not one of my favourite bands, infact, I regard them the same as the likes of Korn, Slipknot, Limp Bizkit, System of a Down, & bands like that who I find a bit too silly- actually the only Metallica album I can listen to is St Anger, & I honestly think it's their best.
This documentary is both funny, feel good & everything else. If you like rock musicin general, you probably gotta see it.
