Country:
USA
Recognizable Faces:
Lemmy
Phil Campbell
Mikkey Dee
Alice Cooper
Jarvis Cocker
C.C Deville
Lars Fredericksen
Dave Grohl
Henry Rollins
And a lot more rock stars...
Directed By:
Greg Olliver
Wes Orshoski
Ian Fraser "Lemmy" Kilmister is a rocker. Or maybe rock n' roll god would be a better way to describe him. That means he doesn't take an acoustic guitar often, he doesn't sing to imaginary girlfriends and never gets all blue for no fucking reason. Lemmy is a hard rockin', hard livin', uncompromising motherfucker. He has been drinking, taking drugs, partying and playing the meanest rock n' roll music in the business for about thirty years now. Motorhead has transcended time as a landmark unit of badass rock, thanks to their stylish frontman. His strength and perseverance made him the cult icon that he is today. LEMMY isn't anything but a huge fucking love letter to the man. That doesn't bother me at all, because there aren't much people in the world more deserve of a love letter than Lemmy.
It's a documentary that is loosely following the chronological development of Lemmy's life, but it's often cut by interviews with a plethora of rockers that are more than happy to explain how the music of Motorhead and the presence of Lemmy around them influences their lives. That's the weird things about LEMMY, it's not very intimate. Greg Olliver and Wes Orshoski are obviously doing a great job at trying to be, because they interviewed his son (who knew Lemmy had a freakin' son?), but not much people actually KNOW the guy. That's part of the Lemmy mythology I guess. He's not the one to talk a lot, he doesn't share his dreams and aspirations, he just does stuff. He's got very little appetite for a romanced vision of life, because he's too busy rocking out every night or getting drunk. Lemmy embodies many things, but he is the avatar of complete freedom, and that must rank pretty high as a reason why people love him. He lives on the road, rocks out every night and does pretty much whatever the hell he wants.
Another reason why you should give LEMMY a viewing is to watch how rock stars handle themselves when they have to talk about somebody else's body of work. Henry Rollins was equal to himself. Generous and smooth talking. But the man is a reputable music enthusiast. Dave Grohl, also comes around as a genuinely nice guy and seeing him discussing Little Richards with Lemmy is amazing. Among those who didn't pass the authenticity test is Billy Bob Thornton, who looked like a sorry asshole who tried to hug the camera and boost his music career and Metallica. What the fuck is wrong with Metallica? Those guys would look like fake assholes, even if their lives depended on it. Among the interviewed rock stars, they took by far the most camera time and even set up a guest appearance for Lemmy on a show. I couldn't get rid of the impression that it was all about them, how "simple" and "rockin'" they tried to be, by showing disproportionate amounts of love to Lemmy. The man took it all in though. he went to their show, did his thing and left. Because that's how Lemmy is.
You're not going to get out of LEMMY with a transcended perspective of documentary cinema. You're not supposed to. If you're as big of a Motorhead fan as I am, or if you're just curious about that funny looking old man with the moles on the cheek, you should watch it. While it butts against Lemmy's personality a few times, it's a touching portrait of a man who gave everything he had to what he did and marked his field of work forever. Rock n' Roll that is. Now, I can say I understand a bit more the kingly status of Lemmy in the music community and the secret of his apparent youth (no, he doesn't look like a man in his sixties at all). He worked, rocked and lived harder than any other musician I know. He truly built something that will get him remembered for decades and decades after he passes away.
SCORE: 81%
Another reason why you should give LEMMY a viewing is to watch how rock stars handle themselves when they have to talk about somebody else's body of work. Henry Rollins was equal to himself. Generous and smooth talking. But the man is a reputable music enthusiast. Dave Grohl, also comes around as a genuinely nice guy and seeing him discussing Little Richards with Lemmy is amazing. Among those who didn't pass the authenticity test is Billy Bob Thornton, who looked like a sorry asshole who tried to hug the camera and boost his music career and Metallica. What the fuck is wrong with Metallica? Those guys would look like fake assholes, even if their lives depended on it. Among the interviewed rock stars, they took by far the most camera time and even set up a guest appearance for Lemmy on a show. I couldn't get rid of the impression that it was all about them, how "simple" and "rockin'" they tried to be, by showing disproportionate amounts of love to Lemmy. The man took it all in though. he went to their show, did his thing and left. Because that's how Lemmy is.
You're not going to get out of LEMMY with a transcended perspective of documentary cinema. You're not supposed to. If you're as big of a Motorhead fan as I am, or if you're just curious about that funny looking old man with the moles on the cheek, you should watch it. While it butts against Lemmy's personality a few times, it's a touching portrait of a man who gave everything he had to what he did and marked his field of work forever. Rock n' Roll that is. Now, I can say I understand a bit more the kingly status of Lemmy in the music community and the secret of his apparent youth (no, he doesn't look like a man in his sixties at all). He worked, rocked and lived harder than any other musician I know. He truly built something that will get him remembered for decades and decades after he passes away.
SCORE: 81%