There is a flood of reviews of “Becoming Led Zeppelin” being published following the film’s release this week.
We’re collecting reviews by professional film reviewers below, including some excerpts from their reviews of the film and any review scores.
You can read our round-up of the film’s previous reviews from its festival release in 2021 here.
The Guardian: 3 out of 5 stars – ‘enjoyable retrospective will be met with a Whole Lotta Love’
The Guardian says that “it’s hard not to head-bang along to the first authorised documentary about the heavy rock legends, but stopping the story in 1969 ignores the band’s more colourful years”.
“Overall, this is a likable and well-researched film, but there is something unsatisfying in ignoring the band’s later stages. Perhaps Part II is in the works,” it adds.
The Times: ‘Page, Plant and a whole lotta missing details’
“Bernard MacMahon’s authorised film of the rock band is sonically impressive and visually arresting but where are the tales of tension and excess,” The Times writes.
Variety: ‘It’s an absolute must-see for fans.’
Variety wrote in its review that the use of archive footage is “stunning and near-definitive”.
Uncut: 4.5 out of 5 stars – ‘It’s worth the wait. The sound is phenomenal, so see it in a cinema if you can’
Uncut’s reviewed criticised the film’s ending, saying: “As MacMahon diligently tracks Zeppelin going back and forward between America and Europe throughout 1969, there’s a feeling that he doesn’t quite know how to end things.”
NME: 4 out of 5 stars – ‘the definitive origin story for Britain’s most explosive band’
NME praised the film in its review, writing: “the film delivers what is advertised. If you wanna know about ‘Stairway To Heaven’, you better start praying there’s gonna be a sequel.”
The Evening Standard: 4 out of 5 stars – a ‘revelatory documentary about a behemoth of a band’
Dylan Jones writes in The Evening Standard that “I don’t think anyone is going to be disappointed by this documentary”.
“Is it too long? Possibly, but isn’t everything these days? Is there too much concert footage? Probably, but then if you’re watching a Led Zeppelin documentary then you’re unlikely to complain about that,” he adds.
City A.M.: 2 out of 5 stars – ‘Becoming Led Zeppelin wastes an opportunity to get under the skin of the music legends’
London newspaper City A.M. didn’t seem to be a fan of the film, saying: “there is a sense that those involved know the importance of controlling the narrative, and as such we aren’t given much that fans of the band wouldn’t already know.”
The Daily Express: 3 out of 5 stars – ‘Sanitised rockumentary with unheard John Bonham audio’
The newspaper calls the film “a mixed bag”, adding that the Bonham interviews in the film are a “particular highlight”.
“This rockumentary does drag a little in the middle and sadly ended just as it was getting particularly interesting,” it concludes.
Classic Rock Magazine: 4 out of 5 stars – ‘It doesn’t wholly demystify this most mystical of rock bands, but it does reveal the human brilliance at their heart.’
“By focusing on the band’s first two years, it pulls Zeppelin down from rock’n’roll’s Mount Rushmore and presents them as they really were: an astoundingly powerful and legitimately groundbreaking band,” this review says.
Mojo: 5 out of 5 stars – ‘Conventional but thrilling document of Zep’s early rise’
“Yes, it’s a mainstream rock saga founded on familiar tropes, but it would take a cold heart not to be moved by this version of it, told proudly by protagonists in their twilight years,” Mojo writes.
Chris Charlesworth: ‘The present day interviews are candid and occasionally revealing’
Veteran music journalist Chris Charlesworth wrote on his Just Backdated website that “The emphasis, though, is on the music, and Becoming Led Zeppelin features heaps of terrific footage from America and the UK, some hitherto unseen, at last by me, though at just over two hours, it is pretty long and could have been trimmed, especially during the final half hour.”
Consequence: ‘Becoming Led Zeppelin is a fascinating look at the creation of one of the greatest rock acts to ever exist’
The review notes there is an “abruptness” around the film’s ending. “It’s a bit anticlimactic, in that the documentary doesn’t take us at least through Led Zeppelin IV,” it adds.
Roger Ebert: 4 out of 4 stars – ‘generous contemporary interviews interspersed with archival footage’
A review on the Roger Ebert website praised the film, saying: “This picture was made with the full cooperation and—to judge from the interview clips—enthusiastic participation of the group’s surviving members. The emphasis is on not just the music but the influences and the career paths that fed it.”
Far Out: 2.5 out of 5 stars – ‘a swollen analysis lacking in excitement or heart’
The film “presents an almost mathematical exploration of how the band came to be but then fails to look into who they become”, Far Out writes.
“When this whole story is only a Wikipedia page away, Becoming Led Zeppelin fails to focus on the thing that is always the most interesting, which is the people and personalities fans are still trying to get to know decades on,” it adds.
CultureSlate: 8 out of 10 – ‘It’s a must-see for any Led Zeppelin fan’
CultureSlate enjoyed the film, saying: “the movie even ended with Bonham talking about his fellow bandmates and how much they meant to him. It was a great addition to the documentary.”
Ultimate Classic Rock: ‘The movie ends suddenly and tantalizingly shortly after the release of Led Zeppelin II’
“As expected from a band-sanctioned documentary, there’s barely a speck of dirt or gossip in Becoming Led Zeppelin. The closest the film gets is Plant, who was married, vaguely recalling a lot of drugs and girls during the group’s first U.S. tour.”
13th Floor: ‘Does a very good job of telling how the band got started and what made them so sonically exciting.’
“Now, much like Zeppelin themselves, MacMahon has made a contemporary piece of art…in this case a feature-length film…built on the backs of musicians and songwriters from a century ago.”
Aftonbladet: ‘Superb concert footage in the Led Zeppelin film’
Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet writes that the film contains “unique concert recordings with first-class sound, which show what a fantastic band Led Zeppelin was with their hybrid of rock ‘n’ roll, blues, folk music and much more.”
RTVE: ‘If you’re looking for sex, drugs and rock and roll, you’ll only find the latter here’
Spanish outlet RTVE said the film’s “greatest asset is the collaboration of the protagonists themselves”.
I saw it in my Imax theater and was not happy knowing more than half of the footage that was already released on the 2003 DVD.
I know a lot of people want the behind the scenes of a zeppelin party but that will only have to live in dream world. I want to see the documentary on how Led Zeppelin ruled the 1970s, I want to see why so many people would flock to see the band live, we all heard the stories how “The concerts of Zeppelin are the real deal.” I know they must have footage of 1973 to 1977 tours, we seen the cameramen at the Pontiac Dome show in 1977, there is 1975 Earls Court and 1979 knebworth.
DO IT ZEPPELIN!!!