What happens when the world's most popular metal band reaches a creative stonewall? They hire a therapist, of course. Metallica band members James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich, and Kirk Hammett find they have a lot more to talk about with $40,000-a-month relationship expert Phil Towle than just musical differences. He, in turn, tries to help the beleaguered power trio deal with substance abuse, personality conflicts, and all the headaches attending the recording of "St. Anger," their first studio album in six years.

An engrossing portrait of one band's journey to personal hell and back, Berlinger and Sinofsky's "Some Kind of Monster" makes for fascinating viewing — regardless of personal musical tastes. The central drama concerns the animus between recovering addict/lead singer Hetfield and arrogant drummer Ulrich, but the appearance of relatives and old bandmates keeps things at a cathartic pitch. Even Towle gets twisted around when the band decides hes gotten too embedded. Revealing and entertaining, this is a soul-searching rock'n'roll story like youve never seen.