METALLICA's KIRK HAMMETT Introduces 'Through The Never' Movie In Schaumburg (Video)

METALLICA guitarist Kirk Hammett introduced the band's new movie, "Metallica Through The Never", prior to its September 26 showing at AMC Woodfield in Schaumburg, Illinois. Check out video footage of his appearance below (courtesy of the local radio station 95 WIIL Rock).

Asked what inspired the whole concept of a narrative-style feature instead of a traditional concert film, Hammett told FEARnet.com: "Well, when you look at concert movies over the last thirty or so years, they all kind of look the same, you know? They combine the concert with interviews with the band, footage backstage, maybe a little history of the band or whatnot... and we didn't want to go down that same old road, especially when you have 3D and IMAX to play with. So we all decided that it had to have a story to really make it as memorable and unique as possible."

Hammett also spoke about what it was like to see himself on a thirty-foot-high screen in 3D for the first time. "You know, I really do not like watching myself on screen, so it was actually pretty laborious for me," he said. "It's no problem for the other guys, but watching myself, all I could think was, 'Oh, man, what a big dork I am... a big dork in 3D IMAX!'"

Regarding whether there was special blocking or choreography that made the 3D shoot more challenging, Hammett said: "It wasn't so much the 3D camera setup as the stage itself, which had to function very specifically for the movie. There were sections that were really dangerous, shooting flames and smoke everywhere, and we had to know exactly where the 'safe zones' were, so we didn't get torched or electrocuted, or have a thousand-pound rig fall on our heads. It was pretty crazy."

According to Box Office Mojo, "Metallica Through The Never" expanded to 589 locations on October 4, but in the process lost most of its IMAX screens to "Gravity", the outer-space thriller starring Sandra Bullock and George Clooney. As a result, it plummeted 56 percent to $697,763. So far, the hybrid concert movie, which was written and directed by Nimród Antal ("Kontroll", "Predators"),has earned just $2.7 million.

The soundtrack, which features a number of METALLICA classics performed live in the movie, was released on September 24. The two-disc CD came out on METALLICA's own label, Blackened Recordings, also in digital and vinyl formats.