A heavy metal band cannot have anything in common with the founder of the Romantic Movement in literature, right? Wrong, as any metalhead worth their salt will gleefully say, citing the closing song from British heavy metal band Iron Maiden’s 1984 album Powerslave, ‘Rime of the Ancient Mariner’, which is a musical retelling of Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s 1798 ballad.

It was quite the culture shock to hear Bruce Dickinson belt out “Water, water everywhere” and “like a painted ship upon a painted ocean” after hotly debating the symbolism of the albatross and Death and Life-in-Death gambling in lit class!

The Malcolm Venville documentary, Iron Maiden: Burning Ambition, uses archival footage and interviews with the band, including founder and bassist extraordinaire Steve Harris, Dickinson, drummer Nicko McBrain, and guitarists Adrian Smith, Dave Murray and Janick Gers.

There is archival footage of Paul Di’Anno, the vocalist whom Dickinson replaced after his increasingly erratic behaviour, fuelled by drug abuse.

The fan perspective used to tell the story is interesting because it highlights the Iron Maiden family, from Dickinson’s rallying cry at concerts, “If you’re a Maiden fan, you’re an Iron Maiden fan. You’re part of one world and one family.”

The fans include rapper Chuck D, Metallica founder and drummer Lars Ulrich, Erik and Per Gustavsson from the Swedish black metal band Nifelheim, actor Javier Bardem, Gene Simmons from Kiss, as well as music journalists, Oxford dons, CEOs, and psychologists.

One of the most striking things about Iron Maiden that comes through in the documentary is the uncompromising nature of Harris’ vision for the band. When punk rock was all the rage or MTV changed the way music was perceived and marketed, it did not persuade Harris to run with the trends. “I’d rather sweep the streets,” Harris said, which he incidentally did as well as work as an architectural draughtsman before fame and success came calling.

Bardem reading the lyrics of ‘Run to the Hills’, from 1982’s Number of the Beast (“White man came across the sea/ He brought us pain and misery/He killed our tribes, he killed our creed/ He took our game for his own need…”) is moving and puts paid to the accusation that heavy metal is all about Satanism and nihilism.

The incredible amount of hard work that goes into relentless touring is also obvious with mentions of blisters beneath blisters on fingers and fevers from infection of the said blisters. The film speaks of the origins of the legendary mascot Eddie, who, while being a stand-in for the shy (yes, really) band also served as a marvelous marketing tool.

Apart from charting the band’s journey from small gigs in London to sold-out arenas around the world (including Bengaluru, twice) Iron Maiden: Burning Ambition looks at the band’s slight dip in popularity during the grunge era, their return bigger and louder, Dickinson leaving the band and returning, his health scare, and piloting the band’s chartered Boeing 757, Ed Force One, and McBrain’s retirement from touring in 2024 following a stroke.

Just like Peter Jackson’s documentary on the Beatles’ creation of Let it Be, Get Back, Iron Maiden: Burning Ambition takes a peek behind the curtain at the hard work, dedication and creative spark required to create music that burns across borders.

If the documentary chooses to be completely uncritical, sweeping every falling-out under the rug, that too is part of the charm, landing far truer than vanilla musical biopics (Michael, anyone?) And what music! With screaming riffs, surging vocals, and a defiant spirit that will outlast any passing trend.

Iron Maiden: Burning Ambition is currently running in theatres