Music

Heavy Metal Tonight on AUX BOX Office at 9PM

by Allan Tong

This animated cult classic was once the most-requested film missing from DVD shelves. Released in 1981, Heavy Metal is loosely based on the various comic strips that ran in the magazine by the same name, which in turn was an American version of the raunchy French sex-drugs-and-UFOs magazine that rose out of the sixties.

The “metal” in this R-rated animated romp comes from the soundtrack, including the title song by Sammy Hagar, while the stories are pure sci-fi. They’re loosely held together by Loc-Nar, a glowing green orb that an astronaut brings home. Loc-Nar kills him then terrorizes the astronaut’s little daughter by showing her a string of seemingly related stories lifted from the magazine.

“Den” by Richard Corben finds a naked stud who attracts a hot of hot babes and fights some bad guys. In “So Beautiful, So Dangerous” a buxom secretary at the Pentagon is abducted by stoned aliens and a oversexed robot. In “Taarna” Loc-Nar changes a tribe of beautiful people into homicidal maniacs, until they are challenged by a sword-wielding woman named Taarna.

Let’s face it. Heavy Metal was read by horny teenage boys, so there’s sex and aliens aplenty here. The biggest kick comes from hearing John Candy voice the nude dude, Den, in his comic voice. Catch Heavy Metal on AUX TV tonight at 9PM, Rogers 107.