Metallica: Some Kind of Monster
| Some Kind Of Monster | |
|---|---|
.jpg) | |
| Directed by | Joe Berlinger Bruce Sinofsky |
| Produced by | Joe Berlinger Bruce Sinofsky |
| Starring | Metallica |
| Distributed by | Paramount |
Release dates | January 21, 2004 (limited) |
Running time | 141 min |
| Language | English |
Some Kind of Monster, also the name of a song released in 2003 by Metallica, is the name of a 2004 film featuring the band.
What began as a simple documentary of the making of an album (St. Anger) turned into a much more personal exploration of the band's relationships with each other, and struggles with the creative process.
The documentary, filmed in a 4:3 aspect ratio, shows many studio rehearsals and fragments of concert footage.
Synopsis
Metallica are forced to examine their nature and their very existence as frontman James Hetfield abruptly leaves the group to enter a rehabilitation facility. Metallica's management Q-Prime hires "performance-enhancing coach" Phil Towle to help the group better understand one another as friends, bandmates and human beings. Towle is frequently yet erroneously referred to as a "therapist", since he voluntarily revoked his own license from the Kansas Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board in the early 1990's for "trying to improperly convince clients to continue treatment". When the members of Metallica decide that 'The Therapist' is no longer required and tell Phil Towle this he tries to convince them that they still need him - "We've still got some trust issues that I think we need to sort out."[1].
Of particular note to Metallica fans is the perceived "power struggle" between Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich - best friends for over two decades who are finally beginning to understand one another. In one of the film's more memorable scenes, Ulrich confesses that he resents Hetfield's need to control everything, even when Hetfield is not present (James objected to the rest of the band working on recorded material when he was not present). The scene ends with Ulrich starting to curse under his breath, before finally getting nose-to-nose with his best friend and roaring "FUCK!!" On April 2, 2004, a rough cut of the film was shown at Gateway Theatre in Chicago, IL [2] where the "FUCK!!" scene was extended. Ulrich actually screamed "FUCK!!" in Hetfield's face a series of times rather than just one time as seen in the final cut that was released to local theatres later in 2004. This was obviously edited probably due to the nature of the content and is not on the "Deleted Scenes" feature or anywhere else on the film's DVD release. In the film can be heard many excerpts from unreleased tracks.The only unreleased song that can be heard fully is "Temptation".
Aftermath
Fan reception to the movie was divided. Many applauded it, praising the band for having the courage to show themselves as naturally as possible, without the pretentiousness associated with millionaire rock stars. Other fans derided the movie and the band for being nothing more than insecure rock stars struggling to come to grips with age and maturity.
Controversy erupted when footage of Dave Mustaine was featured in the film. Mustaine, Metallica's former lead guitarist who was fired by the band in the early 1980s for substance abuse, nearly came to tears after revealing his distaste for always being second to Metallica. Mustaine protested the usage of this footage without his consent. He also stated that he once hoped to collaborate with the band, with which he has had numerous conflicts over the ownership of select Metallica songs. However, Mustaine believed that the band, specifically the drummer Lars Ulrich, had now committed a "final betrayal". [3]
