Film Review: God Bless Ozzy Osbourne

THE first and best thing to do when taking a squiz at God Bless Ozzy Osbourne is to shut the veteran rocker's sham reality TV show out of your mind.

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THE first and best thing to do when taking a squiz at God Bless Ozzy Osbourne is to shut the veteran rocker's sham reality TV show out of your mind.

The result of two long years spent with the heavy metal godfather, this compelling and well-constructed documentary lures the real Ozzy out of his cartoon shell.

Told properly - as it is here - the true story of Osbourne's remarkable career makes for riveting viewing.

Ozzy's pioneering work out front of the eardrum-shredding Black Sabbath gets its right due, as do the towering highs and terrifying lows of his years as a solo artist.

In particular, the down times endured by Osbourne - not only the famous addictions to almost everything, but also personal tragedies such as the controversial 1983 death of his gifted collaborator Randy Rhodes - are handled with disarming honesty.

The less committed of Ozzy's followers may find their attention tapers during too many sequences of the man hitting the 21st-century stadium-tour treadmill.

However, there are plenty of loud, lewd power chords and shrill vocal wails booming out of cinema speakers on a regular basis to ensure nobody nods off.

God Bless Ozzy Osbourne (MA15+)
Director: Mike Fleiss
(The Quest)
Starring: Ozzy Osbourne, Sharon Osbourne, Tommy Lee, Henry Rollins, Paul McCartney
The saint, the sinner, the man, the music
3.5 Stars