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The Lost Segment That Was Finally Recovered | Heavy Metal (1981)

Golden Flicker

1,264,580 views

You will be shocked to discover the incredible truth behind the production and sudden erasure of 'Heavy Metal' (1981). In this video from Golden Flicker, we reveal the secret legal battles and deleted sequences that almost prevented this adult animation masterpiece from existing at all.

Unearth the chaotic, multi-studio history of an animation milestone that defied the industry, only to vanish into a music rights cage for sixteen years. We break down the hidden rough cuts, the highly controversial rotoscoping techniques, and the completely discarded framing narratives that completely alter the soul of the film.

Timestamps
0:00 - The Film They Tried to Erase
0:58 - A French Accident: The Birth of Métal Hurlant
2:04 - A Film Built by Many Hands
3:05 - The Music You’d Never Expect (And the Saturn 3 Call-Back)
4:08 - Rotoscoping and Artistic Cheating
5:21 - [Transmission Intermission]
6:53 - The Disappearance: Locked in a Music Rights Cage
6:57 - Blood, Backlash, and the Paradox of Taarna
7:53 - Shards of a Broken Masterpiece
8:46 - The Framing Story That Was Thrown Away
9:44 - Neverwhere Land: The Segment They Cut
10:52 - Pick a Country, Pick a Cut
11:37 - Quick Controversies and Production Trivia
13:31 - Legacy

#GoldenFlicker #CinemaHistory #HeavyMetal1981 #AdultAnimation #CultClassics #LostMedia

20 Comments

@GoldenFlicker Creator 2 months ago Pinned

📽️ A million thanks to the million of you who stopped by in just 30 days. This is the greatest achievement for our channel in its first year.

Funny thing is, this video was not even on our original production schedule. There was a connection at the end of our Saturn 3 video that prompted some requests to a dedicated look into Heavy Metal. I thought, "Why not?" and here we are.

My usual practice is to read and reply to almost every message. But the thread has grown to over 3.5k comments, making it impossible to catch them all. Please accept my apologies!

Please leave your suggestions for our next video below this comment. Thank you once again for your remarkable support!

@jamesbarca7229 3 months ago (edited)

In the summer of 1985 I was in basic training at Fort Leonard Wood Mo.. It was ungodly hot. I got a post pass for a few hours and to escape the heat, I went to a small movie theater that was playing a movie I never heard of called Heavy Metal. Between the incredible animation/music, the ice cold air conditioning, and the shockingly good sound system for a tiny little theater on an army post, I felt like I had been transported to another world. By the time it was over, I had all but forgotten where I even was. Walking back out of that theater, the oppressive heat and the realization of where I was hit me like a sledgehammer and snapped me back to reality. It's something I'll never forget

@whiskeyvictor5703 3 months ago

Heavy Metal, Conan the Barbarian, Beastmaster, Excalibur.....these summed up the awesomeness of the early 80s!

@sharisparkles404 3 months ago

I was on restriction by my parents, but I snuck out and saw Heavy Metal with my friends. I was 18 then, I’m 63 now and I still love this movie.

@mbgrafix 3 months ago

I first saw it upon its release, back in 1981 when I was 17.

@ch2iss 3 months ago

I was playing DnD watching this in the 80's.

@bxanchezo 3 months ago (edited)

My dad used to talk to me about this movie he saw once, about that Loc-Nar and stuff. I spent months all over the internet until I finally found it.
We sat in the sofa one weekend and he explained the movie while it was playing. He was considerably happy… and so was I.

@jiminthe603 3 months ago

I was 16 years old working as a ticket taker in a movie theater when the movie was released. I watched it every night for 2 weeks. I was blown away!!

@charlesballard5251 3 months ago

I was 14 when "Heavy Metal" hit theaters. I went to see it with my mother. She didn't get up and walk out, but she did announce during the "Harry Canyon" segment, "WHOO-EVER MADE THIS MUST BE TIT-CRAZY!!!". The only thing that kept me from embarrassment was that no one in the theater knew us.

@EnligUlv 3 months ago

I was a freshman in highschool when I stumbled into a theatre with one of my football pals. Loved the music. I showed it to my son when he was about 10 or 11. He still loves it at age 40.

@rhondamoore9842 3 months ago

I saw it in the theater when it first came out. This, and Rocky Horror Picture Show, were in our constant midnight movie rotation. I still have a copy, and the soundtrack album too.

@ntilewills5679 3 months ago (edited)

When Heavy Metal first came out, my brother and I convinced my mom to take us to the theater to see it. We were 12 & 13 years old. Mom spent most of the movie giving me the side eye. "You knew it was going to be like this!" She said....lol Oh lordy lord I paid hell for that little adventure.
Also over on the Major Grin channel he does a side by side comparison of Heavy Metal Vs The Fifth Element. Check it out.

@sfpbosb85 3 months ago (edited)

My older brother took me to the midnight movies to see this in 1981. Still one of my favorite animated movies and soundtracks.

@lookylookhere71 3 months ago

In the 80's they would show it on cable. I recorded it off Cinemax

@BrianBoniMakes 3 months ago

I got to assist the special effects sound recording. The recording engineer had an old VW bus and he showed up with all his gear and we went around turning on equipment and grinding pieces of metal in a machine shop. When he figured out what he wanted he set up the mic and called action. Took about a day. The robot with the spinning blade for a hand was me holding a grinder.

@Shu-s9b 3 months ago

Went on my first date and saw this movie, one of my favorite memories 🥰

@mikebasil4832 3 months ago

Even before Blade Runner, The Terminator and Brazil revitalized the sci-fi cinema for the 80s, there was Heavy Metal to affirm how courageous it would get. Thank you for your review.

@christopherleodaniels7203 3 months ago

I worked in a video store in 1985–6, and I’m here to tell you that every day, and I mean EVERY single day, someone would come in and ask when the Heavy Metal movie was coming out.