Lemmy

Being as I was a part of the London metal community in the seventies and eighties, a Hawkwind fan in my youth (saw them a few times in '72 and '73) and a Motorhead fan right from the beginning (I managed to catch their first few live shows in 1975 or whenever), I was, I guess, right at the front of this movie's core audience. Not even I, though, could have hoped for a more complete and more satisfying experience as the movie turned out to be!

Having had the privilege of spending time with the great man himself on a number of joyous occasions, I can happily report to any interested parties that 'Lemmy' is as honest a portrayal of the man as you could possibly hope for. He is exactly as this movie shows him to be, and that alone is enough reason for anybody - metal head or not! - to make the effort to see it. There is - and there will only ever be! - one Lemmy. Thank god (or maybe the other fella..?) that somebody had the balls to make this movie so that we may all cherish it in the years to come.

First off I have been a Motorhead fan since the early '80's. I remember when this band was completely underground, playing gigs in the U.S. in places as small as the Rainbow Bar and Grill in which Lemmy spends a lot of time to this day. Anyways, Lemmy has always been kind of a caricature of himself, or a bit larger than life even before Motorhead became more mainstream in U.S. culture. I say this because he has always been an odd combination of being raucous, gracious, a hell raiser, and kind of a normal person who happens to get on stage in front of thousand of people 9 months out of the year. All without ever bending his morals, beliefs, or way of doing things.

As far as the movie is concerned it is a very interesting look at the reality of the "rock and roll" lifestyle, it's ups and downs. The film is put together a little odd, with interviews and footage from past and present being intermixed throughout. Entire concert footage clips may not appeal to those who are not Motorhead fans, (let's face it, they are an acquired taste) but the subject matter which is LEMMY will be interesting to anyone who likes rock, or metal because it is an honest and intimate look at one person who has pretty much seen it all and done it all at every level of the music and entertainment business. What we learn is that there is at least one person on this earth who truly does not care what you as a person or a viewer think about him, but if you treat him with respect he will gladly reciprocate with an honest and no b.s. style which one rarely sees from people who are in the publics eye.

I managed to see this at the local cinema last night, the Riverview special late night showing, and it was a joy. It was a wonderful film and to watch it with a like minded audience enriched the experience.

The film is well shot, well edited and has great access to a wide range of people from Lemmy's past, and people who have been inspired by him. All the interviews seemed to give the same image of the man, which is one of the main points about him; he lives the life he wants, accepting the consequences and living an authentic life. The film is surprisingly funny and moving, and although he lives a life very different to most people I think it is quite life affirming. The film has a fantastic cast, well interviewed, some good shots of his music (but not so much that it would alienate people who are not into heavy rock'n'roll) some careful editing to give coherence, judicious use of slow-mo and worthwhile clips after the titles. I was smiling for most of this movie, which I did not expect.

This movie deserves the accolades heaped on it. It is an excellently made movie about a very interesting subject. I would love to see the team do another movie, or biographical movie, as their style here made what could have been a humdrum run through of one unusual lifestyle a wonderfully entertaining, informative and interesting film.

Do you love Lemmy?? No, nor me. Or at least, I didn't before I went to see this documentary as a brownie-points concession to my metal-head boyfriend.

Now I think Lemmy is AWESOME! Still don't like metal or Motorhead, but that is really irrelevant because this film is so engaging and its subject so endearing, original and wonderful.

I knew little about Lemmy apart from the cowboy hat and the warts. But my heart was truly warmed - both by him and by the loving regard that fellow giants of metal apparently hold him in.

The man's a total one-off and on that basis alone, this documentary is well worth seeing.

I still hate metal but even if they're only indifferent to the music I think most people would love this film. And if you're a fan already, then it's absolutely unmissable.

Before I start I better confess right away that I am a huge admirer of Mr Kilmister, his music has branded me since I was a kid, his legacy is present everywhere around the modern Rock scene.

This is exactly with what this film starts and where the excitement may take its path, BUT, I'm not reviewing Lemmy as a person but a film portraying a human being. After the first 15 minutes I was in mood, I was hungry to know more about someone that inspired millions of people. But the more the film moves on the more it becomes clear that the people who made this film are obviously die hard fans. This is not a bad thing, but unfortunately it leads to this impression of "Hey, didn't I just hear that same statement out of another mouth with other words about 5 minutes ago?" - The news factor decreases steadily and the repetition factor grows with every minute of this documentary.

After about an hour I was a little skeptical on how this film is supposed to end. Yes, it's nice to see him meet, talk (about), perform and socialize with lots of other giants of the Rock industry - but even that becomes a little repetitive as this documentary continues. I thought "Ok, I got it, this guy is god, stop reminding me!" - In fact it's Lemmy himself who "downs" most of those glorifying statements with really grounded responses that reflect the wisdom that he has gathered during the years of his stunning career.

Long story short: Lemmy Kilmister is not just an amazing musician, he's a great person too. But it doesn't take 116 minutes to make that clear. Lemmy is simple, maybe that's what makes him so great, but this film tries to stretch that over almost two hours and to be honest, this becomes quite boring.

Why 7 out of 10? Because "Lemmy" has its/his moments for sure. The most interesting thing about it is the fact that as a viewer you don't start distancing yourself from Lemmy but rather coming closer to him in a very natural way. If that is what the makers intended -> applause! Still I believe that 70 minutes would have done that too.