Considerably weak given real life comparisons

Rating: Null/10 (25 October 2002)

Let me say I play hard rock and am a hard rock historian. While this movie didn't flat out suck, it could have been done much better with more key to detail. Some points I might add..

The movie is losely based on the Judas Priest story but if you know your Judas Priest none of the movie is really accuarate. Halford left priest on his own doing and was not fired.

First off Herek should have used somebody other than Walhberg to play the part of "hero", given Mark's past as a 'rapper' and having no real knowledge of such a situation involving heavy metal singing (movie or not).

Keep in mind the movie takes place about the mid 80s (say 84-86 max) yet while the soundtrack is good, some of the actual songs in the soundtrack were written/recorded much later than the supposed time frame of the movie (Bon Jovi - "Slippery When Wet" in 1986, Motley Crue "Wildside" in 1987, and AC/DC "Are You Ready" in 1990). Sloppily done and researched.

Accoring to the movie, Izzy (Wahlberg) comes in to replace Beers about 1985, does a few tours, puts out one album, and then seeminngly "walks out" within a two year time zone. Again, sloppily done given what real life is. Even some of the worst of the many replacement singers that have come in to many a 'real-life' metal bands had a tenure of much more than just "2-3" years (recording a new album and a subsquent tour alone often takes up more than a year). Blaze Bayley spent 6-7 years in Iron Maiden alone after Bruce Dickinson left.

The ending is stupid, showing Izzy leaving a larger than life metal band to supposedly "finding his love" of playing crappy alternative music in some local bars. (Again, the timing thing. Alternative music didnt explode until really the mid 90s and the movie has him doing this at maybe 1990 the latest, back when hair metal was still ruling). Not to mention 20 years from now many of us are gonna look back and wonder why "alternative music" was so overhyped (most of it sucked).

All in all -- an okay movie. Could have been done much better. Wasnt too well-received (probably because of the inaccuaracies) and thats why it wasnt at theatres too long.