Film Review: Studio 666
Images courtesy of Sony Pictures Publicity Australia.
Foo Fighter’s 2021 was a wild ride. In February the release of their 10th studio album Medicine at Midnight, was met generally with reviews of being a solid, but run of the mill release. Unfortunately, the result was an album that is unable to add much to the typical Foo Fighters sound that the band has cultivated over the last 25 odd years.
To back this up, the band did what any would do: release a record store day exclusive, Bee Gees cover album under the alias ‘Dee Gees’, which features such classics as ‘You should be Dancing’ and ‘More than A Woman’, complimented on the B-side by live versions of five songs taken from Medicine at Midnight. Honestly, as surprised as everyone seemed to be at this move, it reminded everyone why they fell in love with the band in the first place: their ability to have fun with wild and ambitious projects. This sentiment has echoed throughout their previous work; in their albums, like Sonic Highways or in their staple music videos like Learning to Fly. The natural progression seems only to be a full length movie…
Well to top 2021 off, the band announced Studio 666, a comedy-horror full-length film inspired by, and filmed in the house they recorded Medicine at Midnight, in Encino, LA, where there was reportedly, paranormal activity during the band’s time there.
“I knew the vibes were off, but the sound was f***ing on” – Grohl to NME.
Studio 666 was released in late February this year. The story revolves around the band trying to find the inspiration to record their tenth studio album. Unfortunately, this inspiration arrives from a possessed tape, which leads to the usual shenanigans you expect from any horror movie.
The release of the movie was tied with the digital release of the song March of the Insane under the pseudonym ‘Dream Widow’, the movie’s fictional thrash metal band. March of the Insane is a fantastic homage to 80’s thrash metal bands and I can only hope there’s more to come. I’m particularly hopeful the main song they spend the duration of the movie working on is released as I absolutely loved the heavy down tuned guitar riffs and huge drum sound they worked with. It should come as no surprise that the band is able to nail the thrash metal score throughout the movie, as Dave Grohl, the lead singer of Foo Fighters (and star of the movie), is a self-professed metal head, going so far as to release a collaborative metal album in 2004 under the name ‘Probot’ featuring such legendary singers as Lemmy, Max Cavalera and Scott Weinrich, not to mention Jack Black. I cannot recommend this album more; it is a fantastic side project from Grohl.
Studio 666 has to be one of the goriest movies I have seen in a long while. I was shocked to see an R-rating on a Foo Fighters movie but right from the first scene it is well deserved, as well as really well done. While I won’t go into specific spoilers, I will say, the image of the couple being murdered in bed is seared into my brain.
I especially appreciate how self-aware the entire movie is. While any movie is a massive undertaking and Studio 666 is well put together, it never felt like anyone was taking themselves too seriously. To be honest the whole project seemed like just a heap of fun for everyone involved and this was definitely reflected in the performances and final product. It is also evident that no one in the band are academy award winning actors by any means, however, their off-beat acting only adds to the parody-esque humour of the film and is reminiscent of the tone of films like Scary Movie.
My biggest complaint is that the movie seems to take a little while to find its footing tonally. The complete 180 between the gritty opening scene and the light-hearted board room meeting that followed really made the initial moments of the film hard to follow. However, once they settle into the Encino house, the film quickly picks up.
Overall, Studio 666 was extremely enjoyable. It’s funny, outlandish, yet manages to have moments that are at times, scary enough to warrant the ‘horror’ label. In saying that, it’s definitely not for everyone. At times the plot is a slow burn, the humour can feel forced, and the gore would likely be a turn off for many. I will say, noted by the scattering of little secrets and easter eggs, this movie was seemingly made for fans of the band and of Dave Grohl’s random side projects, as it definitely fits into that category. I would also recommend Studio 666 to anyone who is able to laugh at the awkward or cliché jokes and doesn’t mind the common tropes of horror movies played out in a self-aware fashion.
Studio 666 played for a limited run in Australia cinemas from the 24th of February to the 2nd of March.