‘Yungblud: Are You Ready, Boy?’ review: a Gen Z rockstar through an unfiltered lens

It’s been an intense few weeks for Yungblud. Shortly after his mature, classic rock-inspired album ‘Idols’ topped the UK Albums Chart, he made a surprise appearance at Ozzy Osbourne’s Back To The Beginning tribute gig in Birmingham where he won over a generation of metalheads who’d previously dismissed his gobby punk anthems. That same performance of Black Sabbath’s 1972 ballad ‘Changes’ went viral – and many tweets of begrudging praise followed.

• READ MORE: Yungblud talks performing at the Black Sabbath celebration gig and his revealing new film ‘Are You Ready, Boy?’

Now, his documentary Are You Ready Boy? is in cinemas. Director Paul Dugdale might be best known for working with stadium-filling megastars Dua Lipa, Coldplay and Taylor Swift but this film sees him follow Yungblud (AKA Dom Harrison) and his band to Berlin’s legendary Hansa studios to capture them performing ‘Idols’ for the very first time. The reason for the whole project, Harrison explains, is that ‘Idols’ is his most “musically ambitious” album yet and he wants to prove to people he can actually pull it off.

It’s impossible not to be impressed with the live version of ‘Hello Heaven, Hello’, a searing head-banger that squeezes an entire arena rock gig into one nine-minute epic. Smirking down the camera after nailing it in a single-take, Harrison knows he’s smashed it. There’s a similar cocksure swagger to ‘Idols Pt.1’, and he sings the fierce ‘Lovesick Lullaby’ while drinking a pint before ditching the mic altogether on ‘Ghosts’ to make sure every single person in the building is clapping along. Harrison’s always been a magnetic performer and Dugdale captures his electric energy in each and every song. Cinema staff better be ready for fans dancing in the aisles when it comes to the sexed-up ‘Fire’.

More romantic than nerdy, there’s plenty for music fans to geek out over as Harrison explores Hansa Studios with wide-eyed excitement. He sits at the same piano David Bowie recorded 1977’s ‘Heroes’ on and stares up at the ceiling, wondering if Bono did the same thing when U2 were laying down their 1991 masterpiece ‘Achtung Baby’.

In between the live performances, Harrison opens up to Dugdale about his motivation to make ‘Idols’, a project he started back in 2020 with producer Matty Schwartz (who worked on his 2018 debut ‘21st Century Liability’) but put on pause to create something his label were more onboard with and his fanbase would recognise. During the hotel room chats, the pair touch on body image, mental health, personal sacrifice and how being able to read what everyone thinks of you in the media at the touch of a phone screen can massively affect your confidence. It’s an intimate look at what it takes to be a rockstar in 2025.

There’s also a lot of joy to Are You Ready, Boy?. The relief and triumph in Hansa Studios when Yungblud and his band finally nail ambitious stadium rock anthem ‘The Greatest Parade’ is palpable and their first big night out together in more than a year ends up as wonderfully messy as you’d expect. Guitarist Adam Warrington (who co-wrote half the songs on ‘Idols’) reflects on meeting Harrison for the first time as teenagers before touring the world together. For all Yungblud’s talk of idols, art and the truth, it’s these glimpses of camaraderie that are the most inspiring.

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