^^ This documentary is over 10 years old. At the time it was released they were just barely passing 40.
It portrays them as a band so negatively that I really cant understand why they even felt the need to release it. This was more than just a band overcoming difficulties, it was a documentary that truly revealed Metallica as a money making machine rather than a group of musicians who are passionate about writing music.
They went into the recording studio with zero plans or direction. It was clear by their jamming sessions that none of the band members actually cared about making music, and basically just threw themselves into a situation that forced them to come up with half-baked ideas.
I can understand that James was going through addiction issues, but this documentary revealed that he had absolutely no passion for working with the band, and he tried to project this onto the other band members to make himself feel better. He barely wanted to work on the album, but when the other band members expressed interests in reviewing the material that they somehow came up with during their sessions, James was pissed that they couldnt work with his pathetically short schedule. When he finally came around to actually putting in an effort, everything he did was still terrible. Yet all of the band members and Bob seemed to just encourage him through sympathy so that James wouldnt storm out, cry like a bitch, or god forbid quit the band. It reminded me of the type of reinforcement parents give to their infant when they successfully go potty without a diaper.
As for Lars, his pedantic and annoying behavior became evident. You could actually consider him ambitious in comparison to James, but all he really did was whine and complain, and the selling off of all his artwork to start the next stage in life was somehow hilariously juvenile and stuck up rich man all at the same time. It's clear that his stupid obsession with abstract art (not saying abstract art is necessarily stupid) attributed to the fail that was St Anger's drum sound. He had very little ambition for the music itself, and seemed to just follow James' pathetic lead while complaining that James was a control freak. Betas shouldnt complain that alphas want too much control. Fucking chihuahua.
And Kirk, lol. All he wanted to do was write solos, but inevitably he failed in making a contribution. The guy just wants to chill and surf, you know? Out of all of the guys in the band, id actually like to hang out with him though. I bet any of the half decent ideas on this album were his contribution.
So in the end, what did they create? An album about being angry and frustrated with not being able to come up with any good ideas. A fully contrived effort of faux aggression that could only possibly appeal only superficially to aging producers and guys completely out of touch with metal. The band also seems equally out of touch. This is truly an album that failed on all levels. They went into the studio with open minds, intending to create something spontaneous, but all it turned out to be was contrived nonsense that was forcefully squeezed out of the band one drop at a time. The whole album and session should have been shelved, but this probably wasnt an option.
