Starring
Rory Culkin, Emory Cohen, Jack Kilmer, Sky Ferreira, Valter
Skarsgard. Directed by Jonas Akerlund. (2018/118 min).
On
Blu-ray from MVD VISUAL
Review
by Fluffy the Fearless🙀
For
the uninitiated, Mayhem is Norway’s most notorious black metal
band. Though credited with being one of the genre’s earliest
innovators, it’s the horrific actions and crimes of certain members
in the early ‘90s that got the world’s attention. If you thought
the off-stage antics of Motley Crue were extreme, Mayhem will
redefine the word for you.
Being
that the band’s reputation is far more interesting than their
music, Lords of Chaos wisely focuses on the former.
Self-mutilation, suicide, church burnings, suggested cannibalism and ultimately
murder...this is the kind of stuff urban legends are made of. But
while the film takes a lot of dramatic liberties with its characters
and timeline, the acts of brutal violence associated with Mayhem are real,
unflinchingly depicted in all their horrific glory.
Fledgling
teenage guitarist Euronymous (Rory Culkin) is the film's (very)
unreliable narrator, assuring us right away this story will end badly. He's Mayhem’s founder and de-facto leader of a
small group of extreme metalheads that call themselves The Black
Circle. These guys proudly profess their death-obsessed nihilism,
anti-Christian ideals and open contempt for anyone deemed a poser.
But despite going to sick extremes to demonstrate their credibility –
both on and off stage – Euronymous is ultimately just promoting
himself and the genre he repeatedly claims to have created.
Then
he meets Varg Vikernes (Emory Cohen), who he first-dismisses as a
poser. But Varg soon proves his worth through his own brand of black
metal, which Euronymous records and releases to sell at his record
store. Varg quickly embraces the black metal mantra to the extreme,
engaging in increasingly dangerous criminal acts. It isn’t long
before Euronymous feels threatened...not by Varg himself, but the
attention his actions are getting from the media and the admiration
from others in the Black Circle. Varg, in turn, grows resentful of
Euronymous vicariously taking credit for everything they've done, from the church burnings to the murder of a gay man.
Much
of the film deals with the escalating conflict between these two,
leading to a tragic (?) conclusion. Neither of them seem to be
playing with a full deck, but at least Euronymous has moments where
he demonstrates small amounts of intelligence, compassion, even
remorse. Varg, on the other hand, is one evil, maladjusted
motherfucker. He’s also kind-of an idiot, making him even more
dangerous. The viewer gets the impression Varg initially just wanted
to fit in with the black metal crowd, but simply took the image to
extremes.
 |
| "Hey, gang! Who's up for some Yahtzee?" |
Lords
of Chaos is directed by Jonas Akerlund, a former black metal
musician himself and the right guy for the job. He also recently
directed Polar, which was all kinds of shitty. But here, his
over-the-top approach is befitting of the subject matter. He pulls
the viewer into this underground subculture with a knowing eye, and
while we’re appalled by what he shows us, we’re so morbidly
fascinated that we can’t look away. He also gets excellent
performances from Culkin and Cohen (despite not sounding even
remotely Norwegian). Where Akerlund struggles, however, is with the
characters.
The
film is certainly audacious, shockingly violent and even darkly
humorous, but we ultimately learn very little about Euronymous or
Varg beyond what’s already been well documented. Surely these two
have backstories as interesting as their atrocities. If there was
ever a movie that should have further-explored what makes its main
characters tick, it’s this one.
But
as it is, the story alone makes Lords of Chaos a
luridly-compelling experience, perhaps even more-so for those
unfamiliar with Mayhem’s dubious mark in heavy metal history. In
fact, since the film isn’t really about the music, fans of the band
or black metal in-general might be put-off at how derisively both are
depicted. For everyone else with strong stomachs, get ready for a
wild ride.
EXTRA
KIBBLES
"11
DIRECTOR’S TEASERS” - Several brief promo spots, which could
almost be considered a deleted scenes feature, since many consist of
clips that are not in the final cut.
TRAILER
DVD
COPY
KITTY CONSENSUS:
PURR-R-R...OR MAYBE RAAAAWWWRRRR.
No comments:
Post a Comment