“Sound of Metal” film review

MV5BMWMyNTAyMWUtYzQ5OC00OGFiLTkzYmItZmNmMzNhMDcwMDhmXkEyXkFqcGdeQWFybm8@._V1_.jpg — 86/100 “sweet”

By: Keaton Marcus

Goddamn. Amazon Prime Video is on a roll with the lack of theatrical releases this year. Seriously, half of the films in my top ten list of 2020 are streaming on their service at the moment. From all three Small Axe films that have been released, to the smashing Borat sequel and now this, Sound of Metal. Starring the fabulous Riz Ahmed and directed by relatively new filmmaker Darius Marder, this is a fantastic movie with stellar performances from its capable cast. The sound design is Oscar-worthy, the film looks great, and Ahmed has proved himself to be an absolute king in this next great performance. This man needs an Academy Award, and perhaps this will get him a nomination. If he doesn’t, however, it’s the Academy being irritating bastards again. Don’t get me wrong, Sound of Metal is also flawed, suffering from some poor pacing and an unfortunate lack of emotional impact, but it transcends its flaws with the acting and technical aspects. People may be turned off by this since the trailers marked this as a tear-jerking movie, but although it was an issue for me, it didn’t bother me enough to drop the rating too considerably.

The film is about Ruben Stone (Ahmed), an aspiring drummer that has a little band with his girlfriend Lou (Olivia Cooke). However, one day when he wakes, up, he almost suddenly goes completely deaf. After being rushed to the doctor, Dr. Paysinger (Tom Kemp) tells Ruben that he’s only got about 20% of his hearing left, and to stay away from any more concerts or loud noises to preserve the remaining portion. Paysinger also tells him that it is possible to get implants to slightly improve his ears, but they will cost 40-80 thousand dollars. As his life goes into utter free fall, he is forced to leave Lou to go to this religious camp for deaf people, attempting to learn sign language in case he doesn’t have enough money for the implants. There he meets Joe (Paul Raci), a man confident in convincing Ruben that being deaf isn’t a disability, and the loss of hearing can come as an advantage. Reluctant but ultimately willing, Ruben eventually goes along with this while contemplating selling his RV to get the implants. Readers may be wondering if this is a true story or not, and it is. Kind of. Sound of Metal is loosely based off of an unmade documentary, Metalhead, which ended unfinished.

Let me be the first person to say this (I’m definitely not), but Riz Ahmed has been wasted in so many subpar movies that it can be painful to look at his career. From a bunch of straight to TV releases, to the mediocre Venom and Jason Bourne, he really hasn’t had his lead breakout performance till now. Sure, he’s supposed to be equally great in Nightcrawler, but I haven’t seen it, and it’s Jake Gyllenhaal who’s supposed to be the tour-de-force there (Yes, I know I need to watch it). Much like John Boyega in Red, White and Blue, director Darius Marder finally gives this clearly talented actor the spotlight in this intimate film. While it wasn’t painful enough to see him go through this transition, the obvious sadness in his facial expressions is enough to make a grown man cry. There really isn’t any other main character in the movie, and that makes it so nothing detracts from Ahmed’s performance. It’s the audience. The screen. And Ruben. This creates a more compelling, intimate and personal viewing experience . Olivia Cooke from Ready Player One is also in the film, but she is off-screen for most of the running time. Although it’s easy to say Cooke was unfairly wasted for the lead’s benefit, that is exactly the point. Not to distract from Ahmed’s character.

Before I elaborate about the issues I had with the movie, there are some impressive things I noticed about the style of the film. First of all, as I briefly mentioned twice, director Darius Marder has flawlessly created one of the most intimately made films I have ever seen. With the constant use of close-ups on Ruben and the blurred-out backgrounds, it allows the audience only to focus on his face, and as I wrote, not to get distracted by any flashing colors or noises behind him. Secondly, and quite similarly, the sound design is impeccable. The Academy-Award winning Nicolas Becker, who worked in the sound department for films such as Arrival and Gravity, had the challenge of creating a film that hinges on silence. He had the ultimate goal of putting the viewer inside Ruben’s head, and he does it. The movie is constantly switching from his perspective and our perspective, with the sound and visuals depicting this magnificently. When it’s Ruben’s view, the dialogue cuts out, reduced to merely mumbling. However, when it switches over to our perspective, the sound is on full blast. It makes you feel a sense of chilling claustrophobia. Sound of Metal is a prime example of masterful musical and visual storytelling, and Nicolas Becker needs another Oscar. Unfortunately, this wasn’t a perfect film, either. Emotionally, the film is disappointingly lacking, and there were so many moments that desperately needed it. The story itself is terribly tragic, and puts this man in a mental dilemma while jeopardizing his career, but the film basks in the plot’s inherent depressing aspects without putting in an effort to go above and beyond. Otherwise, prominently in the middle, the pacing dragged quite often, and I felt the need to check how much time was left in several instances. Besides these two, however, this is a virtually seamless achievement, and one of the best films of 2020.

The final opinion is: Sound of Metal mostly makes up for what it lacks in emotional investments and pacing with Riz Ahmed’s powerful performance, awards-worthy sound design and an intimate, claustrophobic feel that can infuriate you…$PLURGE IT

Rated: R (for language)

Genre: Drama

Runtime: 2 hours

Directed By: Darius Marder