Prime Time: Sound Of Metal (2019)

I am not sure what I was expecting from Sound Of Metal, a film summarized best as being about a rock drummer who loses his hearing, and I have to say that I remained free of expectations as I watched the plot unfold. And yet, annoyingly enough, by the time the end scene occurred, everything felt inevitable and satisfying. I should have seen it coming from near the very start. But I didn’t, and I was happy to have been taken on such an interesting and thought-provoking journey.

Riz Ahmed plays Ruben, the central character. He plays in a band with his partner/manager, Lou (Olivia Cooke). When Ruben starts to lose his hearing, it happens very quickly. Thinking he might be able to get by until it returns, Ruben soon gets a reality check from a doctor. The main solution is implants, but they’re costly. In the meantime, Ruben ends up staying at a small community for the deaf, headed up by Joe (Paul Raci), where people are taught the communicaton skills and attitude required to live a life without hearing.

Directed by Darius Marder, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Abraham Marder, reworking a documentary project by Derek Cianfrance into a standard narrative feature, Sound Of Metal is well-handled by everyone involved, but viewers will think of two main aspects as the end credits roll. First is the sound design, and second is the cast.

The sound design throughout is phenomenal, placing viewers inside the headspace of Ruben, whether he is thrashing away on his drum kit or struggling to hear what anyone is saying to him. It also feels like a valuable reminder to people to make use of as many communication tools as possible, whether that is via technology, via art, or via ASL.

Ahmed is as great as ever in the lead role, spiked attitude matching his spiked blonde hair, and his anger and frustration are completely understandable, even while viewers can see the moments in which he makes choices that aren’t in his best interests. Cooke is also very good, although she benefits from the later scenes in which she can show a very different side to her character. Raci is the typical sage for this kind of tale, and he fits the bill well, constantly trying to motivate Ahmed’s character with tough love and valuable lessons. His last scene in the film is a brilliant display of both his strength and his earnest consideration for others. Mathieu Amalric and Lauren Ridloff add to the main cast, both coming into the story at different times in order to really help open the eyes of our lead, albeit in very different ways.

Not an easy watch, and maybe not one that will prove immediately satisfying (this is a film that I think you need to spend some time mulling over after having just watched it), Sound Of Metal is a sweet and soft-centered lesson wrapped in layers of intimidating armour. Although specifically about loss of hearing, it could be about any number of things that affect our lives. Sometimes we spend hours, days, years even, trying to fix parts of ourselves when maybe it would give us more peace and happiness to just figure out a way to accept how we are.

8/10

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Prime Time: The Place Beyond The Pines (2012)

Having explored the highs and lows of a developing and unraveling relationship in the superb Blue Valentine, director Derek Cianfrance followed it up with this exploration of parenthood, and the decisions that have repercussions for future generations. This doesn't have the weight of the preceding film, despite the best efforts of everyone involved, but it's still very good.

Ryan Gosling plays Luke, a carnival stunt bike rider who struggles to figure out the best way to move forward when he finds out that he is the father of a child after hooking up with a woman named Romina (Eva Mendes). He somehow, thanks to some none-too-indirect nudging from a man named Robin (Ben Mendelsohn), decides that he can provide best for his son by robbing banks and using the ill-gotten gains to provide for those he loves, even if Romina is now with another man (Kofi, played by Mahershala Ali). Crashing into this scenario comes relatively new cop, Avery (Bradley Cooper). Lives will be irrevocably changed, and the plot starts to writhe and wind towards a melodramatic finale.

A film about people doing the wrong thing for the right reasons, or the right thing for the wrong reasons, or just generally making mistakes that can lead to consequences more serious than they could ever have envisioned, The Place Beyond The Pines is a film that will resonate with anyone who has tried to be responsible for a loved one, whether you managed it or felt you let them down.

Written by Cianfrance, Ben Coccio, and Darius Marder, this is all as effective as it is simplistic. It could easily have become soap opera stuff, or just downright tedious by the time viewers waited over two hours to get to the expectedly convergent climax, but the cast, and the assured direction, make it very much worthy of your time.

Everyone I've already mentioned does great work, often sitting alongside their very best, but there's no small amount of pleasure to be derived from a cast of supporting players that includes Ray Liotta, Rose Byrne, Harris Yulin, Bruce Greenwood, and both Emory Cohen and Dane DeHaan, the last two playing two children who end up connecting in a way that you just know is going to bring some things to a head.

If you've seen the trailer for this movie then you may already think you know where it's going. Gosling hurtling through woods on his dirt bike. Cooper as the good cop. Clouds of tragedy hanging over the main characters. You'd probably be right with a lot of your guesses, but there are one or two interesting developments that will also keep you on your toes. And being able to stay a step ahead of the plotting, for the majority of the movie, doesn't take anything away from the impact of what's being shown.

7/10

You can buy the movie here.
Americans can buy it here.