A new indie film has some big, mainstream support.
Rockville Music Magazine reports Metallica liked "Hesher" - a film starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Rainn Wilson and Natalie Portman - so much that they decided to give the production rights to their music for use in the film.
Levitt writes: "HESHER is coming out May 13! I loved making this movie, and I love how it turned out. It’s hilarious, but it’s not just funny, it’s smart, it’s sad, it’s hopeful, it’s heartfelt, and it rocks. Natalie decided to produce Spencer’s script for a reason, and by the way her character’s nothing like you’ve seen her. Devin, the protagonist, is a truly talented young actor. Rainn gave a legit no-joke badass dramatic performance. And, I’m humbled to say, Metallica themselves liked it so much they gave us their music, they never give their stuff to movies!
Now this really is an “indie” film, meaning it’s being independently released without any huge corporations behind the marketing and advertising and all that jazz. 500 Days of Summer had that “indie” spirit, but it was put out by Fox Searchlight who has tons of resources to spread the word. HESHER’s just got us. So pass it around!"
Pass it around is exactly what Levitt and Metallica's fans are doing. Links to Levitt's tumblr post has infected the web with more than 4500 feeds spreading the word about the film and Metallica's generosity.
In the trailer for the film a segment of Metallica's "The Shortest Straw" is featured. Avid Metallica fans will instantly take note of the font used on the Hesher movie poster.
Metallica has, in fact, given usage of their music to films like “Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills” and “Absent” - a documentary film focusing on the worldwide crisis of absent fathers. In “Absent,” Metallica frontman James Hetfield provides an intimate look at the painful impact left on his life when his father, Virgil abandons his family when Metallica's frontman was only 13.
Hesher – official trailer (2011)
