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heavy metal

Heavy Metal: Battling the Ever-Growing Evil

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This was my first entry into the world of Heavy Metal.

Having heard of the film for decades, I was well aware of the classic status amongst animation fans. Now, with the film’s restoration on 4K for the first time, this seemed as good a time as any to take the ride that people have been talking about for so long.

It’s a wild ride.

For others who may be unaware, Heavy Metal is an animated anthology that follows a glowing green orb that represents the ultimate in evil. Horrifying a young girl with wild stories of dark fantasy, the orb lays waste to the universe with increasing peril, ultimately leading to a final showdown on a faraway planet.

Based on the illustrated magazine of the same name, Heavy Metal is a wild, unruly animated romp that broke boundaries upon its release. Whereas R-rated animation has become more common in recent years, it was relatively unheard of on a mainstream level in the early 1980s. What’s more, the film is anchored by songs by Black Sabbath, Blue Oyster Cult, Cheap Trick, Devo, Grand Funk Railroad, Stevie Nicks and many more. As such, there’s a certain level of respect for the material that the film carries to this day. 

What’s more, the film contains a shockingly solid cast of comedy icons. Produced by Ivan Reitman, the film is the very definition of Canadian content in the 70s and 80s by featuring voices such as Joe Flaherty, Eugene Levy, Jackie Burroughs, Al Waxman and the late John Candy. (I have to admit that it felt a little emotional to hear Candy‘s voice again after all this time.) 

Restored in 4K, one has to admit that the visuals look absolutely spectacular, giving the film a clarity and colour that is absolutely remarkable. Heavily influenced by anime, there is a certain sense of vibrancy to this sort of hand-drawn work that is often lost in a Pixar world. Stemming from the Don Bluth-era, this style of work is so well-crafted that it almost feels like rotoscope technology at times. As a result, Metal’s restoration infuses the film with new life and should satisfy the viewer with its vitality.

With this in mind though, while the animation remains stunning, the storytelling and themes have not aged as well. Each story is essentially a drug-infused male sexual fantasy, where men are valiant bad boys and buxom women are prepared to reward their heroes however they require. Fueled by graphic violence and sexuality, Metal is not for the faint of heart. For long-time fans of the film, this is of no surprise. However, for a first-time viewer such as myself, this sort of filmmaking may be jarring, especially in a post #MeToo world. (Taarna almost breaks this theory by giving a stronger female lead, but her hyper-sexualized appearance definitely stems from the male gaze.) While I hardly fault films for being a product of their time, it doesn’t necessarily mean that are relevant in the present. With its bravado and masculine dominance, I feel like this is likely the case with Heavy Metal.

Admittedly, the stories are definitely a mood. The noir-ish vibe of Harry Canyon almost feels like Blade Runnerin its prevalent darkness and corruption. Captain Stern is a dark comedy. Den’s silly heroism may be reminiscent of He-Man but it’s ritual sacrifice and violence give the episode a brutal edge. In each tale, darkness is a heavy weight that covers the land.

Tied together only by the dark power of an orb, each episode showcases a battle against the forces of evil. However, although the protagonists due their best, the power of evil grows consistently throughout. Until the final climax, Metal emphasizes the heaviness of oppression that marked 1980s cinema. In each narrative, the unnatural occurs with increasing authority. Corruption remains prevalent. Human sacrifices are made. The dead rise in a zombie apocalypse. In this animated universe, the forces of good are often kept at bay (or worse, remain silent). True heroes here are the ones willing to sacrifice themselves yet, frankly, few are found. 

One way or another, Heavy Metal will leave its mark on the viewer. For fans of the franchise, there is little question that they will be thrilled with the amazing quality of the restoration. However, for newcomers such as myself, this Metal definitely doesn’t keep its shine.

Heavy Metal is available on 4K on Tuesday, April 19th, 2022.

Days of the Bagnold Summer – Nothing Important, Just Life

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For most of us life isn’t like the movies. We seem to go day by day without a great deal of drama. And yet those days that seem so ordinary are what life is made of. Days of the Bagnold Summer, directed by Simon Bird, is that kind of movie. The drama and the comedy are just the kinds of things that may not seem like much at the time, but they are bricks of life.

Sue Bagnold (Monica Dolan) is a single mom raising her 15 year old son Daniel (Earl Cave) in the English suburbs. Daniel is your typical metalhead wannabe. He dreams of being in a band, but he’d have to be the front man since he doesn’t play an instrument. He’s scheduled to visit his father and his pregnant young wife in Florida that summer, but when his dad decides it’s not a good time, Daniel is left with an open summer. Daniel, the personification of ennui, is set to sleep the summer away, but Sue isn’t having it. She sends Daniel out to apply for jobs (which he does in a manner that is doomed to failure). And she tries to do things with him to rekindle the fun they had together when he was younger. Daniel just wants to listen to Metallica.

Sullen teenagers just don’t want to have fun, though do they? Daniel is at an age where he hasn’t really discovered who he is or even who he wants to be. That metalhead persona is really just a form of holding pattern. And so the summer goes, through “early days”, “salad days” and “dod days”. Along the way Sue gets asked out on a date by Daniel’s former teacher, which only complicates things for both of them. But basically, the two struggle to find a way to coexist in the new world teen nihilism.

It’s interesting the way Bird has found to show the distance between the two visually, like the clothesline with black on one side and pink on the other, or Daniel in the foreground eating and Sue in the background a room away eating separately). But as the summer moves forward, they come together more often, even though each is also finding a new understanding of themselves in the process.

There is not big event or blowup that summarizes the summer. And yet, we seem to understand that this summer is in its own way an important time in their lives. As such, this is a movie that captures the kind of lives most of us live. Little by little all these days add up into a life.

Days of Bagnold Summer is available on virtual cinema through local theaters and on digital platforms.

Photos courtesy of Greenwich Entertainment.

Sound of Metal – A Place of the Kingdom?

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Is healing a return to what came before, or is it finding life anew? In Darius Marder’s Sound of Metal, a man has to decide what he will accept in his life that has been turned upside down. He discovers that what he thinks will make him whole may not be as good as he hopes, but he also discovers that there are gifts that he can tap into that will bring him peace and joy.

Ruben (Riz Ahmed) and Lou (Olivia Cooke) travel the country as the band Blackgammon, a punk metal band. Ruben plays the drums. Their trademark is that they are LOUD. Yet, when in private, they listen to much softer music. One day Ruben suddenly loses his hearing. When he goes to a doctor, the news is not good. It will not be coming back.

When Lou sees that he is beginning to return to an addict’s behavior pattern, she takes him to a farm where there is a community of deaf addicts in recovery. The community is led by Joe (Paul Raci), an alcoholic who lost his hearing in Vietnam.  It is a hard transition for Ruben. When he comes into the community, he is hyper-isolated. He can’t understand them when they sign. They can’t understand him when he speaks. He is more interested in getting his hearing back (through very expensive cochlear implants) than adapting to the world as a deaf person. His goals are different than those around him.

Riz Ahmed as Ruben in SOUND OF METAL Courtesy of Amazon Studios

In time, Ruben begins to learn to sign. He also begins teaching deaf children to play drums. But all the while, he wants more. He is always busy. He fixes things around the farm. But all of that is a way to avoid his feelings. Joe notes that his refusal to accept his situation is very much the behavior of an addict. Joe gives him an assignment: to go into a room with just a pencil and paper and write. He can write anything. It doesn’t have to be a story or even sentences. Just write and write and write.

The addictive behavior that Joe notes is interesting. It is not only the danger of drugs that Ruben must deal with, but the hearing life that he is trying to hold on to. It is hard to move forward when tied to the past. His desire to hear again—at any cost—is a barrier to finding something new.

I need to admit that when I first read the synopsis of the film as I prepared for AFI Fest, it wasn’t high on my list. But when I heard others who had seen it earlier rave about it, I made sure in include it in my schedule. It turned out to be one of my favorites of the festival. It is extremely engaging on an emotional level. Ruben struggles throughout the film, not just with his hearing loss and his addictions, but against a future he cannot see. Even as he begins to have some growth, he continues to be deeply troubled.

We also learn that this is in reality a spiritual struggle. That epiphany comes when Joe tells Ruben that he too needs to spend time writing and writing. When he can write no more, and there are moments of stillness, “that place is the Kingdom of God”.

That idea reminded me of the story of Elijah in 1 Kings 19. When the prophet felt overwhelmed by his struggle with King Ahab, he went to the wilderness to find God. He wanted to whine a bit. As he waited for God a mighty wind that could break rocks came, but God wasn’t in the wind. Neither was God in the great earthquake or the fire that followed. But then there was “a sound of sheer silence. There the voice of God spoke to him.

We often overlook the spiritual aspects of the struggles we have—whether it is addiction, illness, or the emotional struggle of the COVID pandemic. We want things to be “normal”. We want our pain to end. We think if we do something, or try harder, things will get better. But sometimes, what is really needed is to stop and wait for the voice of God that comes in the stillness.

Sound of Metal is available on Amazon Prime Video beginning December 4th, 2020