Melbourne International Film Festival: Lemmy

by Ernesto Zelaya Minano 26 July 2010 20:37 Filmink Festival Coverage

A must-see for the rock 'n' roll fans...

"Who'd win in a wrestling match, Lemmy or God?"

"Trick question: Lemmy IS God."

In the annals of rock and roll history, only one man can truly claim to have seen and done it all: Motorhead's Lemmy Kilmister. Greg Olliver and Wes Orshoski's Lemmy is a fitting tribute to a man who is considered nothing less than a legend in the world of hard rock. The surprising thing about this all-access pass into Lemmy's life is how much he differs from the party animal rocker image he projects. You would expect a gruff, leather-studded behemoth who loves to wreck hotel rooms and have wild parties, but Lemmy is surprisingly mellow, and a nice guy to boot.

Having fronted Motorhead for close to forty years, Lemmy has surprisingly not let fame and wealth get to his head. He lives in a cramped L.A. apartment stacked wall to wall with music memorabilia (with a stretch limo conveniently waiting for him outside), and spends most of his time at the bar at L.A.'s Rainbow Room playing trivia games.  Above all, however, Lemmy is a normal guy with a self-deprecating and sarcastic sense of humour. His "tell-it-like-it-is" attitude leads to many a hilarious (and unprintable) story about his personal life and his experiences on the road. Of course, he is no saint and knows it, admitting freely to heavy drug use and excessive drinking.

In a touching and hilarious scene with his son, Lemmy also admits to having been a less-than-stellar father; this is, in a way, a reconciliation for both and proof that behind the legend, lies a regular man with flaws, whose only odd trait is a fascination with Nazi imagery and war memorabilia; Lemmy candidly brushes aside accusations of Nazi sympathy by admitting to having had "three black girlfriends".

Olliver and Orshoski's main focus, however, is on the music and Lemmy's undeniable influence in the world of rock and roll, with a who's-who of rock greats offering their two cents: among others, Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl waxes philosophical on Lemmy's iconic status, and the tough-as-nails members of Metallica are reduced to nearly-sycophantic, giggling schoolgirls when they invite the Motorhead singer to play with them at a gig.

Lemmy's early life, upbringing, and his doings away from the world of music are not really dwelled upon here, but that's precisely the point: he has been living and breathing rock and roll his entire life, and will probably never stop. As he himself puts it, he's not really qualified for anything else. Without the music, there'd be no Lemmy.

Lemmy is a film made for fans of rock and roll and Motorhead; for the uninitiated, it's a hilarious and fascinating portrait of a man who, despite his larger-than-life status, is really a regular guy who just does what he wants, the way he wants.