Metallica: Some Kind of Monster (2004)

Some Kind of Monster is a wonderful look into a band that is gradually falling apart. To be quite honest though, it was nowhere near as bad as I had been led to believe. Sure there are some spats between band mates, but it never got to violent excess. In fact, all it did show was their passion as each one believed in what was right for the music. At one point Lars even agrees, when discussing the naming of the album, as he didn't see Frantic as having any negative connotations. This shows a band where a member has just left and another is battling addiction. Of course there are going to be some arguments. I felt that above all this showed a band of 20 years continuing to mature. There are some very emotional moments, such as the scene with Dave Mustaine, as he talks about feeling betrayed and number 2 for all these years. The chemistry between Hetfield and Ulrich is that of a married couple prone to arguing, but you can still feel the love. As for Hammett, he is their awkward child stuck in the middle hoping it's all gonna be alright. A great film about music, business, passion, and ego.

This film has far too much group therapy and not nearly enough music. The issues expressed in the therapy sessions are banal; important to the participants, but not interesting to an outsider. You get no sense of why Metallica was so important to so many people. It is hard to believe that they would allow a film crew to record them in such an unfavorable light. The thing that leaped out about Metallica's music was always the furious, dark, angry energy. Hearing Lars complain about James being late to practice is not that exciting.And visually, they don't look so good up close anymore. Pushing 40, gaining weight, losing hair, with wives and children -- they even say it themselves: it's not rock'n'roll.Part of the fun of idolizing a band is that you think that the people are somehow different or special. That is a fantasy, of course, but it is an important part of being a fan. The film reduces the musicians back to just normal whiny folks.The therapist is obviously eager for the spotlight. It was unethical of him to agree to the filming of the group therapy, even though the participants agreed. When a camera crew is present, people speak and act differently than if no camera crew was there.There is some talk of money that you don't normally hear. Lars offered Rob Trujillo $1,000,000 as an advance when he joined the band. There is a discussion of voting rights based on percentages based on length of service. The therapist got $40,000 per month.

Some Kind of Monster is a brutal and honest documentary, which exposes the 2003 version of Metallica as 3 guys who have COMPLETELY lost touch with the scene they helped create. Jason Newstead perfectly sums up the current state of Metallica with a quote from an interview in 2003, "On all previous albums, Metallica sounded like leaders. On this one, they sound like followers."The film follows Metallica during the creation of what was billed to be the return-to-form, classic Metallica album, St. Anger. Instead, the world was delivered a misguided and un-administered(thanks Bob Rock) attempt at sounding like modern mainstream metal bands. Note the scene in which Lars tells Kirk that there should be no guitar solos on the album because he feels they've been "outdated." Lars requested this because it was the trend at the time amongst modern "metal" bands. Kirk even calls him out on this.During the mid to late 90's, the general public seemed to have a rather low opinion of Metallica due to the Napster lawsuit, high ticket prices, and poor album output. This film provides some explanation as to what (and more importantly, WHO) were the internal causes of Metallica's fan backlash. The answers of which should come as no surprise to most Metallica fans, but the degree of ignorance amongst the decision makers in Metallica's "Inner Circle", still comes off as a shock with every viewing.As a further testament to the film, you almost feel like you are not watching a documentary at all. Rather, you feel like you are watching a tragic drama, full of anti-heros who are so pre-occupied battling their own demons that they cannot come together as normal human beings to solve the simplest of problems. It is hard to feel sorry for any of these "characters", considering the massive levels of both professional and personal success the have all had. Instead, I found myself being mad at them for almost forgetting their roots. Their communication internally is so forced and fake... yet at the same time, THIS IS REAL. These interactions REALLY happened. There was no script. This really was a documentary.Some Kind of Monster gives all of us all a behind the scenes look at the internal decision process of a struggling multi-platinum metal band. It is a privileged sight that most people never get to see regarding their favorite band... but for most Metallica fans, this intense look is sure to be upsetting.

Where should I start?James = Ego, need a Therapist because I can't connect to myself. But nonetheless I am better than you! Kirk = Have no opinion anyway, so it really doesn't matter. Lars = Well, let's just say the "$" went too his head. Otherwise, just a normal, Hollywood wannabe who thinks he is a somebody. And Finally,Rob = "Why the hell did I leave Ozzy for these guys??????????????" Rob, again = "Jason has a GREAT job now!!!!!!!!!!!"That pretty much sums it. Well, see you on the "RICH" side!