Dunn, Sam
Iron Maiden-Flight 666-The Movie (DVD)

June 2009
Released: 2009, Banger Productions
Rating: 4.5/5
Reviewer: EvilG

Last night, May 5th 2009, local St. John's metalheads crawled out of the catacombs to see the one and only showing of Iron Maiden: Flight 666 on the big screen at Empire Theatres. Flight 666 was released in select theatres in late April and thankfully someone at Empire Theatres decided to bring it to their chain for one night only. Flight 666 is not only huge for Maiden and for metal; it's huge in the world of documentaries as this represents the largest simultaneous worldwide release of a documentary film to date! Go metal!!! As with everything metal, no local publicity or promotion for the film took place. It was only via word of mouth that people knew this was going to play here. Taking that into account, the turn out was great. The seats were not completely filled, but a few hundred turned out and pretty much packed the theatre. Most of those in attendance appeared to range from their late 20's up to early 40's and were mostly male which again is no surprise as that's the main audience metal pulls in most places. Waiting for the film to start was exactly like waiting for a typical metal show to start in St. John's. You had to listen to fucking crap music that had nothing to do with Maiden/metal, and then see previews for shit movies aimed at 12 year olds...whatever. We waited, and finally to the sounds of "Aces High" the film began.



Immediately you are struck with the awesomeness of the sound and the quality as we enter the realm of the world's most beloved heavy metal band. We are taken aboard Ed Force One for Flight 666 on Iron Maiden's world tour around the globe on the "Somewhere Back in Time" tour. This tour wasn't about treading along the well-worn paths or reliving the past, this was a tour that transported Maiden to many countries, cities, and fans that have never had the chance to see their favorite band before. This is what makes this film and the tour so special. Similarly to the documentary Global Metal by the same film makers, this offers an eye-opening look into how important metal, and in this case, Iron Maiden, are. The stops that Iron Maiden makes in South America are perhaps the best to see as the level of Maiden fanaticism surpasses anything imaginable for most North Americans or Europeans. The old footage of people freaking over the Beatles or Elvis comes to mind, except those doing the screaming are metalheads and not sobbing girls (however there is one sobbing older dude with a drum stick in the movie…wait for it…just…wow..ha!). Imagine camping out for days and days and walking through some kind of violent police gauntlet just to see a band?! This is what fans in Colombia had to put up with...crazy. After several scenes of complete fan chaos, the scene abruptly cuts to a calm and quiet golf course where two conservatively dressed ponytailed dudes are golfing...those dudes are drummer Nicko McBrain and guitarist Dave Murray. What a great way of working together the contrasts.



The two film makers primarily responsible for Flight 666 are Canadians Sam Dunn and Scot McFayden. As fans they must have lost their minds following Iron Maiden’s “Somewhere Back in Time” tour, which encompassed 23 sold-out stadium and arena shows in Asia, Australia and North, Central and South America. Add onto this that they didn’t just sit in a bus or drive around, but vocalist Bruce Dickinson piloted a Maiden-ized 757 plane for the band, gear, and crew. As far as I know this is a first not only in metal but in a band’s tour. Narration doesn’t take over on the film as the music does most of the talking. The film is for the most part live music interspersed with just the right amount of off stage material, interviews, and of course obtaining a whole new appreciation for the huge impact Iron Maiden has on a global legion of fans.



If you couldn’t get to a theatre to see the film, then watch for the DVD and Blu-Ray on Monday 25th May and Tuesday June 9th in Canada and in the USA.



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TOUR SCHEDULE - SOMEWHERE BACK IN TIME WORLD TOUR - FEBRUARY/MARCH 2008



February 2008

Friday 1st - Bandra Kurla Complex, Mumbai, India

Monday 4th - Burswood Dome, Perth, Australia

Wednesday 6th - Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne, Australia

Thursday 7th - Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne, Australia

Saturday 9th - Acer Arena Sydney, Australia

Sunday 10th - Acer Arena Sydney, Australia

Tuesday 12th - Entertainment Centre, Brisbane, Australia

Friday 15th - Pacifico, Yokohama, Japan

Saturday 16th - Messe, Tokyo, Japan

Tuesday 19th - The Forum, Los Angeles, USA

Thursday 21st - Auditoria Telmex, Guadalajara, Mexico

Friday 22nd - Arena Monterrey, Monterrey, Mexico

Sunday 24th - Foro Sol, Mexico City, Mexico

Tuesday 26th - Saprisa Stadium, San Jose, Costa Rica

Thursday 28th - Simon Bolivar Park, Bogota, Colombia



March 2008

Sunday 2nd - Palmieras Stadium, Sao Paulo, Brazil

Tuesday 4th - Pedreira stadium, Curitiba, Brazil

Wednesday 5th - Gigantinho, Porto Allegre, Brazil

Friday 7th - Ferrocarrill Oeste Stadium, Buenos Aires, Argentina

Sunday 9th - Pista Atletica, Santiago, Chile

Wednesday 12th - San Jose Coliseo, San Juan, Puerto Rico

Friday 14th - Izod Centre, New Jersey, USA

Sunday 16th - Air Canada Centre, Toronto, Canada