HEAVIER TRIP -- Familiar Riffs, But Missing Some Original Magic

review by Jonathan Berk

In 2018, fans of metal music and outrageous comedies were treated to a charming cinematic merge with directors Juuso Laatio and Jukka Vidgren's Heavy Trip. After six years, the guys are back with the aptly titled sequel, Heavier Trip. The first film was full of charm and some wild comedic moments that made it extremely memorable. While the second film tries to give audiences more of the same, it doesn’t quite live up to its predecessor.

After the events of the first film, the members of Impaled Rektum — Turo (Johannes Holopainen) on vocals, Xyrtax (Max Ovaska) on bass, Oula (Chike Ohanwe) on drums, and Lotvonen (Samuli Jaskio) on guitar — are still serving time in Norway’s nicest prison. The guys are initially content with finishing their sentence until Lotvonen’s parents' reindeer farm is about to be foreclosed upon. If they can land a big gig and get paid some big bucks, they could potentially save the farm — and Lotvonen’s father’s health. After busting out of prison, they set their sights on getting added to the Wacken festival in Northern Germany.

It’s not uncommon for sequels to attempt to give us more of the same. Heavier Trip commits the sequel sin of bringing the guys back to what is essentially the same place they were at the beginning of the first film. There is mention of their fame and the demand for their music after the exploits of the first movie — but the plot quickly undercuts this, still leaving them as a group of nobodies. A large part of the film essentially debates whether they should “sell out” or not, and every moment connected to that seems to ignore the fact that they played a major show at the end of the first film. The conflict in this sequel feels contrived, and while the idea of a road trip is embedded in the name, this particular trip just feels like more of the same. If it managed to be as endearing and as funny as the first film, maybe this could be overlooked…but something is missing here that keeps those feelings just out of arm’s reach.

That’s not to say there aren’t elements that work. Xyrtax is still such a fun character. Aside from being the one truly dedicated to the music — at least from his perspective — his interactions with others are often the best moments. The real-life band Babymetal shows up as a recurring joke, with Xyrtax at the center, and it’s an excellent addendum to his character and the clear highlight of the film. 

The band as a whole is what makes Heavier Trip worth watching. While it doesn’t quite hit the highs of the first film, the band’s charm remains intact, making it easy to root for these metal misfits the more you’re with them, despite the predictable plot. Turo’s drive to be an epic metal singer is unmistakable, and you genuinely want him to succeed. Lotvonen and Oula have their quirks and are also very likable. The amiability of the band, despite the extreme nature of their music and songs, makes this an easy watch. As every bump along the journey happens, you hope the guys can figure it out. Unfortunately, many of those bumps feel silly, redundant, or too predictable to make the entire journey memorable.

There are a few cool set pieces that make the film pop a little more — yet, for a film about a band, it doesn’t feel like there’s enough music. Even when we do get scenes of the band playing, they’re often cut a little too short, only giving us a taste of their talent. The camerawork, costumes, and production all make those scenes visually pop, which only makes it sadder when we realize how brief they’ll be.

Heavier Trip feels like it lands squarely in the sophomore slump often associated with a band’s second album. It’s not that the movie isn’t good, but it’s clearly not as good as the first. That comparison makes this one simply feel lesser. Imagine waiting for a band to finally come back to play the encore, only for them to replay some of the songs they played earlier in the night — it’s hard not to be disappointed.

Heavier Trip is in theaters and available on VOD on November 29.

Rating: 3/5