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Metal: A Headbanger's Journey
Metal: A Headbanger's Journey Image
Metascore
73 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 10 Critics What's this?

User Score
7.9 out of 10

Generally favorable reviews- based on 13 Ratings

Your Score
10 out of 10
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  • Summary: Sam Dunn is a 30-year old anthropologist. He's also a lifelong metal fan. After years of studying diverse cultures, Sam turns his academic eye a little closer to home and embarks on an epic journey into the heart of heavy metal. His mission: to try and figure out why metal music is consistently stereotyped, dismissed and condemned, even while the tribe that loves it stubbornly holds its ground - spreading the word, keeping the faith and adopting the style and attitudes that go way beyond the music.… Expand

Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 10
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 10
  3. Negative: 0 out of 10
  1. Variety
    Reviewed by: Ken Eisner
    90
    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.
  2. Austin Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Marc Savlov
    89
    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.
  3. Empire
    Reviewed by: Will Lawrence
    60
    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.

See all 10 Critic Reviews

User Reviews

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Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 6 out of 8
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 8
  3. Negative: 0 out of 8
  1. AmandaC.
    10
    This documentary really makes you realize a whole aspect of metal that people don't allow themselves open enough to see. I think Dunn did a splendid job of basically proving that metal is what makes any individual stand out. You can percieve it to be an act of the devil, or you can understand and accept. You can criticize this movie any way you prefer, but this came from a true metal fans heart, and thats a right in your face 10 rating for me.… Expand
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  2. MartinF.
    10
    This movie makes you feel what is the heavy metal real power.
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  3. Michael
    5
    Fun, but dull -- it suggests alot of interesting questions that it categorically ignores. Issues of musical structure (beyond the use of blues scales), the effect of band transitions from underground to mass-market, etc., are ignored for fanboy hero worship and pandering to self-satirical academics. If you want to be taken seriously, then choose a real thesis, and follow it through.… Expand
    • 0 of 0 users said yes

See all 8 User Reviews