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Metal: A Headbanger's Journey

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Canada · 2005
Rated R · 1h 31m
Director Sam Dunn, Jessica Wise, Scot McFadyen
Starring Sam Dunn, Chris Adler, Tom Araya, Gavin Baddeley
Genre Documentary, Music, Drama

Co-director Sam Dunn sets out across the world to uncover the origins of heavy metal and its many subgenres, as well as the traits, controversy, and culture that surround them. A labor of love from someone who loves heavy metal and wants other people to love it too.

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What are people saying?

What are critics saying?

63

Boston Globe by

As charming as Dunn's kid-in-a-candy-store exploration is at times, it's apparent that his ''anthropological" take on the scene isn't much more than the love letter he always dreamed of writing to his headbanging pals.

70

Chicago Reader by J.R. Jones

Metal culture is a giant topic, and Dunn has made an ambitious stab at it, exploring the music's social, religious, and sexual implications.

90

Variety by Ken Eisner

Superbly crafted documentary is strong enough to make believers out of non-metalheads, and inside enough to get the devil's-horns salute from the most diehard followers.

70

Los Angeles Times by Kevin Crust

Dunn says he's been defending his choice in music since he was 12, and the film is a carefully organized and thoughtful argument for the merits of metal.

50

The New York Times by Manohla Dargis

Mr. Dunn and his colleagues dig up some interesting information during their inquiry, like the origins of the devil-horns hand signal, metal's signature salute, but their insider love of the music finally proves as big an obstacle to the film as their ploddingly pedagogic approach.

89

Austin Chronicle by Marc Savlov

There's so much information and so many finely honed arguments in this ultimately joyous film that it's liable to send audiences scurrying home to their computers to download the bands they've just heard.

60

Empire by Will Lawrence

A documentary that preaches to the converted if ever there was one, but Dunn's enthusiasm for the subject and the range of pretension and humour of his interviewees makes for fun viewing.

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