Studio 666 Movie Review

“Studio 666” is a blood-drenched, horror-gorified satanic festival of murder, mayhem and foul language. In other words, it’s just another day hanging around with Dave Grohl and the band ‘Foo Fighters’. Well, maybe not quite as many dead bodies in real life. Oh, face it – Dave is probably just an ordinary middle-aged guy, who happens to be a Rock Star.

Dave (portrayed by Dave Grohl) is called with his bandmates into the offices of his Record Producer, Jeremy Shill (played by Jeff Garlin). The ‘Foo Fighters’ are supposed to be working on album number 10, and Dave has run out of creative steam. The other band members are Taylor (portrayed by Taylor Hawkins), Chris (portrayed by Chris Shiflett), Nate (portrayed by Nate Mendel), Pat (portrayed by Pat Smear) and Rami (portrayed by Rami Jaffee). They all agree that they need a change of place for this new album.

Shill works with an Encino Real Estate lady named Barb Weems (played by Leslie Grossman). She has the perfect place that is a little-known get-a-way for the band. Back twenty years ago, a big Record Producer lived in that mansion. He had gotten another band who was recording in the estate. That band turned out multiple hits, but they never finished that album they started in the house. I wonder why? Dave and group come over to the huge estate, and they know it will be the inspiration that Dave needs to kick his brain juice into gear.

Strange things begin to occur at the house. Could it be haunted? But after a roadie/tech gets electrocuted and fried like a wiener in deep fryer, they all decide — nah, it’s not haunted. It’s just bad wiring. But crazy things still pop up, and Dave starts to hear voices in his head. The band meets a sexy next-door neighbor named Samantha (played by Whitney Cummings). She is into Spiritual Enlightenment, and into Lemon Bars. She makes some for the band, but Dave is too busy to have any. Rami is very interested in the Lemon Bars, and even more interested in Samantha…

Dave orders up some food for delivery. The Food Delivery Guy (played by Will Forte) is really excited to meet Dave. After all, the ‘Foo Fighters’ is his second favorite band (right after ‘Coldplay’). Dave thinks this dude is a loser, and he did not even bring enough ranch sauce. Then Guy wants to tell Dave about his ‘demo tape’, and Dave sends him away. How will Dave ever find his inspiration?

What if he follows his ‘head voices’ when they tell Dave to see what is down in the basement? Dave finds his way there, and discovers the tape being made by the band twenty years ago. They have a hard-edged metal rock song on that tape, but then it abruptly ends. Why did it never get finished? Same reason the album never was completed — they were all dead!

But now the song is stuck in his head, and a dead raccoon is stuck on the wall. Blood is dripping onto a weird book. Dave gets the book, and now demon spirits are all around to prance on and into his head… Dave is possessed and has been taken over to the Dark Side. He gets the band back together and tells them of his new music. It would be most awesome metal trashing they will ever hear — all in the key of ‘L sharp’. But wait, says Pat — what is ‘L sharp’? That’s not a real thing! Nate agrees, and Chris nods and Rami shakes his head. Taylor is a drummer, so he doesn’t care. Dave says they need to press on, and work harder and harder — they must finish this DAMN SONG!

Food Delivery Guy is back another time, and this time the meeting with Dave goes not go that well. Dave is the crazy one, but the Food Delivery Guy loses his mind — and the head in which his mind was attached. Samantha comes over to tell the band about the last time this happened twenty years ago. The prior band members were all murdered by the band leader, who was insane because a curse of an ancient book.

Hey, that was the same book that Dave found! First Chris is not on the witness chair, but he does wind up getting ‘grilled’. Then Sam and Rami go off by themselves to stay ‘protected together’, and they wind up like so much sushi on all-you-can-eat night. Taylor goes back with Dave to finish the drum track, and then Taylor himself gets ‘finished’…

Dave has become an impersonal vessel for a crazed demon who wants blood. Oh, and plenty of blood. The demon wants all types and varieties, and in any possible manner. But will there be any potential way to stop Dave? Can the remaining members (Pat and Nate) figure out what has gotten into Dave? And can they figure how to get it out? Will they all die trying? Will this be the ultimate case of ‘Selling your Soul for Rock ‘N Roll”?

“Studio 666” is pretty much a vanity project, or maybe it is a passionate goal of Mr. Grohl. He came up with the story (which is a pretty crazy one at that) and he convinced all the members of the band to take part in it. He was able to get a handful of more well known actors (Will Forte, Jenna Ortega, Jeff Garlin) to also participate. Everyone is up for making a broad spoof on the record industry and on horror movies.

Well, let’s face it – for the most part, these guys are not actors. But they all work pretty hard at making themselves look kinda foolish and goofy. That is a big risk right there. Sort of the like the real actors who play versions of their public personalities in the movie “This Is The End” (with Seth Rogan, Jay Baruchel, James Franco, etc.).  Most of this movie is an over-the-top Black Comedy, with an emphasis on fake blood and real Cuss Words. It could have wrapped up in less than ninety or so minutes, but it seems to go on “Everlong”…

“Studio 666” – When the band ‘Foo Fighters’needs to work on studio album number 10, then this will be just the place to record a ‘killer track’.