Heavy Metal

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source: Heavy Metal

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Heavy Metal

I thought this was a fun movie when it came out in 1981, but it really doesn't hold up that well. The first problem is that you have such an extreme mix in tone between the stories they don't fit well together. You have drama, comedy, horror, and swords and sorcery, and going from a story with humor (Captain Stern) to horror (B-17) back to humor again (So beautiful and so dangerous) just doesn't work. A bigger problem is the animation itself. It's mostly of poor quality, and to be fair, by 1981, even Disney had lost it's touch in this artform. A couple of the stories do work. The B-17 story is quite good, as is the final one. (which probably could and should have been expanded into a full length feature, which is what they tried to do in Heavy Metal 2000.) Should point out this movie with its excessive sex and gore, could never be made today with the current batch of prudes at the MPAA.

Heavy Metal (1981) is a movie I watched for the first time in a long time that I DVR'd off Retroplex. The storyline follows an evil orb that is unleashed that embodies various evils and is hunted down by a female warrior that is destined to stop it. This movie is directed by Gerald Potterton (The Rainbow Boys) and contains the voices of John Candy (Summer Rental), John Vernon (Dirty Harry), Eugene Levy (American Pie), Richard Romanus (Mean Streets) and Joe Flaherty (Happy Gilmore). The storyline, settings, situations and soundtrack in this was awesome. The animation is classic 70/80s and so unique and fun. The kill scenes, action sequences and villains in this are awesome, as was the use of nudity and the sex scenes. The humor in this is a bit uneven but there are some really funny lines and sequences. The monologue is also very good. There honestly isn't anything I'd change about this film and this is definitely a must see. I'd score this a solid 9/10 and strongly recommend it.

Grimaldi returns home from a Space Shuttle trip landing his Corvette through the atmosphere. He bring home a present for his daughter, a glowing green orb called the Loc-Nar. It turns out to be a sum of all evil. It disintegrates Grimaldi and shows the little girl how he destroys the lives of people it touches in a series of short stories. The animation is dated with the 70s style. The material is violent and full of scantily clad women. It is sexist and juvenile. It just does it with such abandon that it fully develops what it promises. It revels in the big * women in tiny outfits and muscle bound men. It's grotesque. It's got good music. It's a cult classic and fully deserves to be.

For those who like stuff like that of course. Because I have friends who despise animation overall. So obviously you can't be that or someone who thinks animation in general is just for kids. This definitely isn't for kids! Maybe Teenagers depending on your rating system where you live. But back to this: Heavy Metal Comics. I never read them to be truthful so not sure how this translates onto screen, but I can say that this is "far out" (as some would call it). Lots of nudity, lots of violence and quite the insane story to boost too. Kind of like a b-movie but drawn. And the animation may not be todays standard (especially because it is hand made rather than on a computer), but it still can be at least considered very good. As you can see, you should not be the already mentioned things to enjoy this, but also you shouldn't be easily offended ... don't take this seriously on any level

One of my all-time favorite flicks is this animated anthology of stories all bound together by this glowing green "Locnar," an orb of evil unmatched in all of time and space. The animations are terrific: "Harry Canyon" about a futuristic cabbie in NYC, "DEN" about a nerd who is transported to a far off land as a hulking muscleman, "Taarna" about mankinds last stand against the power of the "Locnar," and others. My personal favorite is the short "B-17" about a bomber in WWII and the horrible power of the "Locnar." As I mentioned previously, the animation is spectacular...reminding me of a day when not everything was computer-generated. Features Cheap Trick, Riggs, Nazareth, Black Sabbath, Blue Oyster Cult, Devo and others on the kicking soundtrack. Overall, a classic of the 80's: one that shouldn't be missed at any cost. My Highest Recommendation.