FULL SLATE OF HEADBANGERS GIVES 'METAL' ITS METTLE.

Byline: Glenn Whipp Film Critic

The devilishly good documentary "Metal: A Headbanger's Journey" was made by a guy who can play air guitar to every guitar lick Iron Maiden laid down, so you know the movie is coming from the heart.

Written and directed by Sam Dunn, a scrawny longhair who grew up to earn an M.A. in social anthropology, "Metal" might not cast as critical an eye toward the music, but, then, 1984's "This Is Spinal Tap" made future condescension a rote exercise. No, what Dunn does is succeed in telling you something about metal, its musicians and the fans that have kept the music alive and thriving for more than 30 years. You might not go out and buy the latest Slipknot album after seeing it, but you will understand why some disenfranchised kid would.

Dunn and co-writers/directors Scot McFadyen and Jessica Joy Wise lay out the history of metal and delve into its many sub-genres, including power and thrash metal, the 1980s L.A. glam scene and that cheery brand of black metal peculiar to Norway, where bands try to one-up each other by burning churches. As one musician puts it, "If there wasn't Christianity, we wouldn't have metal as we know it." Obviously, Dunn doesn't shy away from music's various controversies, going into metal's attitudes toward women, religion and mayhem. The revelations are both thoughtful and funny. It turns out the ubiquitous devil's horn sign came from Ronnie James Dio's Italian grandmother. (It was her way of warding off evil spirits.) The dudes from Slayer admit that "God doesn't hate us all" - it just made for a catchy album title.

And while it's easy to join elder statesman Alice Cooper and dismiss the whole scene as empty posturing, Dunn's movie does make a convincing case that metal is pop culture's most direct way of confronting the things we fear the most (i.e. The Reaper).

The conformity of the metal world might be somewhat laughable - just how much of an "outsider" are you if you dress like the other 20,000 people at the concert? - but the music does undeniably provide something of a makeshift family for a lot of people. If you can't wrap your mind around that, the affable Dunn, who appears throughout "Metal" as a cordial and curious tour guide, doesn't mind. "We're doing OK without you," he says, wrapping up his journey.

Glenn Whipp, [phone]

glenn.whipp(at)dailynews.com

METAL: A HEADBANGER'S JOURNEY - Three stars

(Not rated: Sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll.)

Starring: Alice Cooper, Vince Neil, Rob Zombie, Dee Snider.

Director: Sam Dunn, Scot McFadyen, Jessica Joy Wise.

Running time: 1 hr. 39 min.

Playing: Laemmle's Fairfax in Los Angeles.

In a nutshell: Affectionate and informative metal documentary from a scrawny longhair who knows Iron Maiden air guitar licks.

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``Metal'' explores the lifeblood of headbangers and their decades-old music scene.