title: Until the Light Takes Us
text: # Until the Light Takes Us
  
  Until the Light Takes Us is a 2008 American documentary film about early Norwegian black metal, directed by Aaron Aites and Audrey Ewell. The film premiered at the AFI Film Festival in 2008, a year before it was released in theaters.
  
  ## Featured interviewees
  
  * Gylve "Fenriz" Nagell (Darkthrone)
  * Varg "Count Grishnackh" Vikernes (Burzum, Mayhem)
  * Jan Axel "Hellhammer" Blomberg (Mayhem)
  * Olve "Abbath" Eikemo (Immortal)
  * Harald "Demonaz" Nævdal (Immortal)
  * Bjarne Melgaard (visual artist)
  * Kristoffer "Garm" Rygg (Ulver, Arcturus)
  * Kjetil "Frost" Haraldstad (Satyricon, 1349, Keep of Kalessin)
  * Bård "Faust" Eithun (Emperor) – Eithun chose to appear as a silhouette, with his voice distorted
  
  ### Archives footage
  
  * Øystein "Euronymous" Aarseth (died in 1993) (Mayhem)
  * Per "Dead" Ohlin (died in 1991) (Mayhem)
  * Snorre "Blackthorn" Ruch (Thorns, Mayhem)
  
  ## Release
  
  Variance Films acquired the theatrical rights to the film in the U.S. and released it in New York City on December 4, 2009. The film grossed $7,246 on a single screen in its first week, the second highest per-screen gross of any debuting film at the time (behind Up in the Air).
  
  ### Reception
  
  Until the Light Takes Us received a 54 out of 100 score on Metacritic and a 46% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
  
  Andrew O'Hehir of Salon.com called the film "crafty and compelling". Nick Pinkerton of The Village Voice wrote, "The filmmakers seem cowed into obeisance by their subjects. Varg's last onscreen appearance is accompanied by a montage fitting a schoolyard crush, and the film's title is the translation of Burzum's fourth album, Hvis lyset tar oss. [...] [the film] arrives a decade too late to add much."
  
  