First Take: Black Sabbath: The End of the End- do not adjust your monitor

SYPNOSIS:
The story of the most famous metal band, Black Sabbath as they conclude their last ever tour

‘Big screen music’ is something that my local cinema has been championing over the last year or so, and I knew I’d have to give in to reviewing alternative content at some point- and what a way to kick off. The Birmingham born and bred metal group played their final gig ever in February this year (at the Genting Arena in their hometown), and they handily turned it in to a documentary, that played for one night only at over 1500 cinemas.

What Dick Carruthers has done for this insightful documentary is blend footage from the final show and footage from a studio recording session 3 days later to show the band do what they do best- entertain thousands every night. It’s paced really well, and considering how quickly this has been turned around, it’s ridiculously impressive. It’s shot magnificently, and for fans of the band, the sound mix is on point.

The whole point of the 2 hour 4 minute cinema cut of this documentary (which included 26 minutes of exclusive footage and extra tracks) is to take Sabbath fans along for the final gig, and with interviews with Ozzy Osbourne and bandmates Tony Iommi and Geezer Butler profiling the band’s rise from unknowns in 1968 to their final goodbyes in February, for fans of the band who want to hear the old hits live one last time, and for university students who just happen to be doing a module on music and communication (like me), this is quite a neat thing to watch.

THE VERDICT

Big, bold, and a damn good sound test for the new screens at the local cinema, The End of the End is an essential watch for Sabbath fans. With the emotion captured perfectly, it’s a fitting way to bring 49 years of excellence to an end.

RATING: 5/5

Business returns to normal here on TheJackSmit.com later today, with the official return to weekly film reviews- welcome to First Take Fridays.