"We're all relieved that the film is coming out," the imposing ponytailed Metallica (news - web sites) bassist Robert Trujillo said last week at the premiere of the rock documentary "Metallica: Some Kind of Monster" at the Loews 19th Street Theater in Manhattan. "This was one big, huge experiment."
Indeed core members Lars Ulrich, James Hetfield and Kirk Hammett bought out their label's interest in "Monster" to avoid its being sold as a VH1 reality series. "We all felt as a team that this would be more special than that," said Trujillo, who joined the band during filming.
The movie opened Friday through IFC Films, grossing a solid $45,000 from three venues in its first weekend.
Metallica drummer Ulrich broke the touchy-feely mood later in the evening: "The only person I wanna thank is Metallica," he declared. "I'd like to thank ourselves! No one pussied out and ran in the other direction. There are still some difficult things in the film for me to watch, and I'm so proud that we had the balls to see this through."
At an afterparty at the Gramercy Park Hotel's penthouse lounge High Bar, the rockers were joined by "Monster" helmers Bruce Sinofsky and Joe Berlinger, Sean Penn and Robin Wright Penn, David Spade, Rebecca De Mornay (news), Penn Jillette, Eva Mendes, and artist-filmmaker Julian Schnabel
Inspiration
