Sound of Metal

Sound of Metal is my favorite movie of 2020.

The competition was not fierce. I've only liked three movies this year. The other two, Spike Lee's Da 5 Bloods and David Fincher's Mank (both on Netflix), are difficult to recommend for all moviegoers, but it's a safe bet that the ultimately uplifting Sound of Metal will touch most anyone who watches.

Riz Ahmed (Nightcrawler) plays a punk-metal drummer who is losing his hearing. This is not the typical rock-star-finds-success-then-crashes-with-booze/drugs-story — thank goodness. It's a story of overcoming challenges. Another reason why this should be crowned the film of 2020.

Ahmed doesn't miss a beat here. His empathetic character is played so genuine that the movie can explore further layers and questions such as the divide in those that view deafness as an identity and those who see it as correctable.

Writer-director-newcomer Darius Marder tells the story in a low-key way that is all the more riveting for it. Ironically, it is the sound of silence that is the most telling.

In a nutshell: It's the only movie in 2020 that I'd go see again in a theater in 2021.

Award potential: Sound of Metal has an underdog shot at Best Picture and Best Screenplay, but it will be hard not to nominate Ahmed for Best Actor. 

Plus, it's sure to rock the title of front-runner for the new Best Sound Oscar. (Sound Mixing and Sound Editing have finally been combined.) The sound design here brings the character's auditory condition to life; it's a work of art.

The Ten Buck Review. Worth ten bucks. (Streaming now on Amazon Prime)

Mank

In Mank, director David Fincher (Se7en, Zodiac, The Social Network) tells the bittersweet story of fabled '30s screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz and the creation of Hollywood's most honored film, Citizen Kane.

Written by Jack Fincher, David Fincher’s late father, Mank is a sharp screenplay that will fully engross film lovers and likely bore casual viewers. Mankiewicz's story is not a beautiful one, but the film's look is — thanks to Eric Messrschmidt's gorgeous black and white throwback cinematography. The look, editing, and screenplay, which is full of flashbacks, pays not-so-subtle tribute to 1941's Kane and films of that period.

Gary Oldman (Darkest Hour) plays  Mankiewicz ("Mank") in a bravado performance alongside Mank's personal secretary Rita Alexander played by Lily Collins (Emily in Paris), boss Louis B. Mayer played by Arliss Howard (Full Metal Jacket), and his "co-screenwriter" Orson Welles, played by Tom Burke (The Souvenir). But it is Amanda Seyfried (Les Miserables, Mamma Mia) that turns heads here. She plays starlet and famed Hearst mistress Mario Davies who was forever unfairly linked to fictional Susan Kane, the untalented singer baron Kane promoted in the film. 

Seyfried dazzles on screen and made my at-home-tv experience feel like a large cinema visit.

Aside from Oldman and Seyfried, this all adds up to a series of vignettes that film lovers will respect but miss an emotional connection to. I wanted a little more heart. The film gets lost in the bigness of the time period and would have benefitted from showing us more on the writer's process and the making of such a classic. But I'm a fan of old Hollywood so it still makes my top five films of the year list. (A pretty small list in 2020 of course.) Available now on Netflix.

In a nutshell: Old Hollywood buffs rejoice! Other viewers may skip this for casual movie night.

Award potential: Expect a tall tally of nominations for Best Picture, Director, Cinematography, Original Screenplay, Actor, Supporting Actress, and more. Seyfried and father/screenwriter Fincher each have a good chance to win.

The Ten Buck Review: Worth ten bucks.