Metalhead (2013)

• Year: 2013
• Released: 20 Mar 2015
• Country: Iceland
• Adwords: 8 wins & 11 nominations
• IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2374902/
• Rotten Tomatoes: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/metalhead
• Metacritics: https://www.metacritic.com/movie/metalhead
• Available in: 720p,
• Language: Icelandic, English, Norwegian
• MPA Rating: Not Rated
• Genre: Drama
• Runtime: 97 min
• Writer: Ragnar Bragason
• Director: Ragnar Bragason
• Cast: Thora Bjorg Helga, Ingvar Sigurdsson, Halldóra Geirharðsdóttir
• Keywords: depression, death metal,

	7.0/10
	79/100
	91% – Critics
	75% – Audience

Metalhead Storyline

On an August midday, somewhere in the remote vastness of rural Iceland, the carefree eleven-year-old, Hera, is unaware that a tragic accident will soon rob her of her last share of happiness. As a result, Hera will rebel against God with an unquenched rage, permeated with the vivid memory of her brother that pulsates in every corner of the house–and under those circumstances, alienated and suicidal–Hera will soon drag herself into a dreary, dead-end life. Years later–still blaming God for the injustice, and fending off any attempts at reconciliation from the local priest–the troubled teenager will embrace her brother’s lifestyle, delving deeper and deeper into the unexplored and fascinating new music movement of Black Metal, finally finding a new purpose in life. However–with Hera still aching for closure, while the wounds of the past are always angry and wide-open–will she grasp in time that wallowing in grief can eat her up alive?—Nick Riganas

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Metalhead Movie Reviews

For the Love of Metal

Without a doubt, Metalhead is the best film about a heavy metal-loving Icelandic farm girl that I have ever seen. Given the lack of access to Scandinavian films for Australian cinema audiences, films such as Metalhead remind us that film is a universal medium and that interesting screen stories can emerge from anywhere. Set in rural Iceland, Metalhead is a film that explores love, grief, family, identity, community and the healing power of music; heavy metal in particular. Director Ragnar Bragason has successfully melded humour into a story that is ostensibly about the lingering after effects on a family following the tragic passing of one of their own. The film opens with the death of teenager Baldur in an accident that is witnessed by his 12-year-old sister Hera. In the aftermath of Baldur’s death, Hera finds solace in the music her brother loved so much, immersing herself in his world of heavy metal. Years later, the young adult Hera is an obsessive, posters adorning every inch of wall space in her room, Judas Priest and Dio blasting from her tape deck and a wardrobe that is exclusively black.

Haunted – both literally and figuratively – by the death of Baldur, Hera struggles to get her life in order. She is seemingly desperate to move away from the stifling confines of her family home, but is unable to actually do so whenever the opportunity arises. Hera is stuck in neutral, unable to move forward and forge her own path, unwilling to sever ties with the connection to Baldur that is the farm they grew up on. The recurring theme throughout the narrative is Hera’s failed efforts to break free – either emotionally or geographically – from her memories of the tragedy. She acts out against her parents and the community as she struggles to find any meaning to her life beyond her music. In her early 20’s, Hera is seemingly on a road to nowhere despite the best efforts and patience of her family and others, including new-priest-in-town Janus (Sveinn Olafur Gunnarson) and her childhood best friend Knutur (Hannes Oli Agustsson). This is not to say we can’t sympathise with her though and it is great credit to the performance of Thora Bjorg Helga that she instils likability in Hera that belies her behaviours.

Of course, Hera is so absorbed by her own grief that she fails to see the impact Baldur’s death has had on her parents, Karl (Ingvar Eggert Sigurdson) and Droplaug (Halldora Geirhardsdottir), who are suffering in silence, more successful at putting on a polite facade, despite being trapped in their own isolation. Karl is stoic on the surface, keeping his suffering buried deep within, focused on his responsibilities to the family dairy operation. Droplaug meanwhile, continues to struggle in her grief and, despite the passing of 10 years, simply cannot let go of her son, refusing to make any changes to his bedroom that serves as a shrine of sorts; she is often lost in her memories and oblivious to what is happening in her immediate vicinity. It is only when both Karl and Elsa are able to re-connect with each other that they are able to move forward from the pain that has haunted them for too long.

Despite the serious nature of the themes explored in the film, there are many moments of great humour, most of which revolve around the reaction of people (and animals as well for that matter) to Hera’s extreme music and/or appearance. A trio of characters who appear towards the end of the film are hilarious and Bragason never opts for the predictable. Just when you think you know where the story is going and how it might all end, Hera finds herself on another path that may, or may not, enable her to find some kind of contentment. Janus and Knutur are great characters who perhaps show Hera more compassion than she deserves given the way she treats them both.

The film provides considerable insight for the uninitiated into the difficulties endured by those living in an environment in which the weather is a constant nemesis. Despite the aggressive nature of the music from which it gets its title, Metalhead is ultimately a temperate family drama set against the most striking of backdrops. The rugged, isolated landscape and the harsh climactic conditions of rural Iceland serve as a fitting locale for a film that threatens to topple into the darkness, but never does.

How some people deal with pain…

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this movie. Title was either “hit or miss” and I was afraid it was going to be exploitation movie. But it’s not.

It was a great drama about how certain people deal with their pain, how people around them react to their, let’s say unusual way of expressing their pain.

Story fallows a young girl Hera who witnesses death (by accident) of her older brother. Few years after that, she still can’t cope with pain of losing her brother, so she turns to metal music as a way of escapism. Naturally, living in small community, she is often misunderstood by others. She expresses her pain on her own “unique” way, while her parents express theirs on their own (father feeling accident was his fault, while mother has trouble moving on).

Hera eventually goes on a self-destructive path because it’s the only way she can deal with her loss and anger since no one can really understand how she feels. Good example of that scene is her best childhood friend who mistakes drunken sex for love, proposing to her, while she replies “Can’t you see anything?”

This is a movie about human nature, nature of pain, how certain people deal (or can’t deal) with pain and loss of a loved one and how people sometimes judge people by it’s cover.

Guy who wrote a review here telling this movie is about “Jesus helping metalheads” just because it happens that movie has understandable priest (because you know, that can’t happen in real life) clearly missed the point of the movie.

This was never a movie about “Jesus helps metalhead”. It was a movie about human nature. Hera never stopped being metalhead, it was just a hint that she and her parents are moving on eventually, because they, like rest of the community are starting to understand Hera.

Review for Black Metal guys

There is not much Black metal in the movie, if you were expecting this. 🙂 HOWEVER, the film is more than worth watching. More or less benign in nature, it deal with humanity of people that are mostly alone. Just they themselves, their work and their pain.

The movie is set about the time Mayhem started forming Black Metal scene; the main protagonist in a way “invented” her version of black metal as a way to cope with death of her brother. Interestingly, the black metal track from the movie (unfortunately just one song) actually sounds really good! It actually does sound like it was made in that time, making the movie only more believable.

While Burzum is not specifically mentioned in the movie (sadly), it was very important for the plot itself.

Slow “studio” version of the song is also really good. (It is called Svarthamar, and there are two versions- studio and demo on YouTube – artist is Petur Bien – the rest of the album is so-so, instrumental ambient music). I don’t remember when was the last time I got shivers down my spine listening to something. The track is really good, especially if you understand the words / read the translation. It goes phenomenally with the movie itself.