Movies
[BD Review] ‘Metallica Through The Never’ Is A Must-See For Fans!
For as long as I can remember, Metallica’s music has been a part of my life. Their impact was at its peak all throughout my high school years. Like many fans will attest, their music and lyrics has a way of speaking directly to the listener on a personal level. Being a bit of an outsider, I was hooked. As unpopular as it may be to admit, I’ve always admired their adventurous side. No matter the ridicule they’ve been bombarded with, the band has always stayed true to themselves. The risk-taking took an all-time high with 2011’s brutally lambasted Lulu, their collaboration with Lou Reed. There’s no other mainstream act that’s dared to take on as may risks as Metallica has. Their documentaries exposed their frailties most artists would never dream of presenting. With all that baggage, most acts would’ve lost their fan-base. Cut to the present; Metallica is still standing strong. Their latest venture, Metallica Through the Never proudly celebrates that.
It’s an unusual hybrid of concert film and narrative. Not since Michael Jackson’s Moonwalker has a major recording artist approached film in such an out-there manner. Set against a backdrop of a Metallica concert, Trip, a young roadie (Dane DeHaan) is sent on an increasingly surreal and hellacious mission to retrieve a mysterious item for the band. The extremely loose plot feels more like an extended music video than anything else. I really dug the setup which creates a perception of Metallica as almost mythological figures, a worshipping fan’s perspective. The larger-than-life imagery (not to mention the native-shot 3D) helps support this cinematically. There are underlining themes that are nicely mirrored with whatever Metallica track the band is performing. Unfortunately the trivial storyline doesn’t really go anywhere significant. Thankfully in the reliable hands of Director Nimród Antal’s (Predators, Vacancy), this surreal adventure is always stylishly attractive to look at and doesn’t bog down the pace too much. Another plus is DeHaan’s completely convincing role as a Metallica fan. Despite the underwritten part, he gives it his full commitment. The unique connection between the band and its fans is perfectly embodied within his performance. If you have any personal connection to the themes being explored in Metallica Through the Never, DeHaan is probably the reason why.
In Antal’s hands, the 3D is never used as an intrusive gimmick. It’s there to draw you in, getting you closer to the Metallica live experience than ever before. He avoids pop-out gags and for the most part, keeping the camera wide to create a fine sense of depth. This is true with both the concert footage and the fictional story. Metallica Through the Never’s gorgeous opening aerial shot is about as good of a tone-setter as you can ever hope for. I also appreciated Antal’s approach to editing. He doesn’t bombard you with cuts, fully aware how it might disorientate the viewer. Images are allowed to linger on which brings out the advantages of 3D technology all the more. If only more filmmakers would use this as a model.
As for the concert itself, the band is in mighty top form. Having the opportunity of seeing the band live on a couple of occasions, it captures the Metallica live experience perfectly. Fans will get a kick out of the ways in which the World Magnetic stage design has been amped up for cinematic effect. There are even some points in which both worlds uniquely meld together. Considering we’re dealing with Metallica, the sound doesn’t disappoint…in fact, it’s damn epic! I had the pleasure of watching this in IMAX and it’s thunderously loud and ass-kicking. It only helps to enhance the imagery all the more. Metallica live has never been better represented than it does here.
There’s not much in the way of appeal for anyone not already converted. If you’re looking for something revealing along the same lines as documentaries Metallica: Some Kind of Monster and A Year and a Half in the Life of Metallica, this is not it. First and foremost, Metallica Through the Never is a celebration of the binding bond between the band and its loyal fan-base. It’s made for the fans by a fan. Antal has successfully captured what it means to be a Metallica fan as well as given us a damn fine concert film to boot. If you love the band then there’s simply no excuse why you shouldn’t go run out to see this and in the best cinema around.
Judging from the unprecedented box office success of Kane Parsons’ Backrooms adaptation, you’ve likely already seen the liminal horror hit that managed to make audiences afraid of empty hallways and bad wallpaper. And now that so many of us have already entered the yellow labyrinth (some of us more than once), the time has come to discuss the spoiler-filled details that make the movie so fascinating in the first place.
And if there’s one element here that makes the Backrooms movie stand out from any previous lore/mythology, it has to be the genius addition of the Still Life entities. Warped recreations of real people that somehow wandered into the Complex, these misremembered creatures are responsible for some of the most disturbing imagery of 2026 – as well as laugh-out-loud memes created by one of the film’s very own concept artists.
However, true to Parsons’ word that the movie would rely heavily on practical effects, each of these distorted monsters was brought to life by real actors under heavy layers of makeup and prosthetics (with the occasional splash of CGI enhancements). While Anora and If I Had Legs I’d Kick You actress Ivy Wolk wasn’t among these performers, despite what Letterboxd might have you believe, the creature cast did benefit from veteran players with plenty of genre experience.
For starters, Alien: Romulus alumni Robert Bobroczkyi (who previously brought that film’s horrific Offspring to life during its most memorable sequence) plays the flick’s main antagonist, the Still Life version of Captain Clark. And though there was some obvious CGI involved in making the character’s peg-leg and nightmarish face more believable, Bobroczkyi’s monstrous performance and his natural 7’7″ frame helped to make that final chase sequence a clear highlight among this year’s genre offerings.
The film’s Texas-Chain-Saw-inspired “dinner” scene also features a freaky collection of less-aggressive Still Life creatures in the form of the Bearded Man, the Red-Headed Woman and, strangest of them all, the cheekily named “Archibald Leland Sutter Still Life” (who earned this title among fans and crewmembers as a reference to his apparent affinity for lamps).
While this was the first major horror outing for both Patrick Baynham (The Bearded Man) and Dana Mahmood (Archibald), Rhiannon Roberts has worked as a stunt performer in everything from Yellowjackets to HBO’s The Last of Us adaptation – which is probably why The Red-Headed Woman is the most active out of Clark’s impromptu “family.” That being said, the Archibald Leland Sutter Still Life is my personal favorite of the bunch simply because his anachronistic outfit suggests that the Backrooms phenomenon might be a lot older than the Async Foundation. I also love how hard he tries to be helpful with that little light of his!
That might be it for the Still Life entities, but I think horror fans will also be pleased to hear that the film’s Found Footage prologue stars none other than Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City star Avan Jogia as Naren Warne – and American Mary herself Katharine Isabelle also shows up in a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it cameo at Mary’s house party towards the middle of the story (though I have a feeling that she originally had a bigger part that was likely cut for time).
At the end of the day, Parsons’ Backrooms may have been an auteur-driven project motivated by the young director’s unique take on the classic creepypasta, but film has always been a collective artform, so it’s fun to see just how many talented performers it takes to bring this kind of supernatural nightmare to life in a way that connects with so many people.
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