Love, Loss And The ‘Sound Of Metal’.
A Film Review.
Allow me to start off by saying that it’s typically always the films I hold off watching which invariably end up being the ones I enjoy the most.
Not for lack of interest mind you, but for the intuitive notion when approaching certain films that one has to be emotionally and mentally prepared to experience a film as profoundly expressive and engaging as ‘Sound Of Metal’.
In this review, I’d like to breakdown the following elements that make ‘Sound Of Metal’ the next title on your must watch list this season:
- Story & Screenplay.
- Performances.
- Music & Sound Design.
- Theme.
(WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!)
STORY & SCREENPLAY
In ‘Sound Of Metal’ we follow Ruben Stone, a former heroin addict and heavy-metal musician who suddenly begins losing his hearing while on-tour with his girlfriend and band mate, Lou played by Olivia Cooke (‘Ready Player One’).
As the severity of Ruben’s hearing loss becomes more evident, the difficult decision is made to check Ruben into a deaf rehab facility run by a war veteran named Joe (Paul Raci).
The plot and its main characters were derived from an unfinished docu-fiction film called “Metalhead”; Helmed by famed indie director, Derek Cianfrance (‘The Place Beyond the Pines’, ‘Blue Valentine’).
Cianfrance’s film, which stars Jucifer band members and real life couple Edgar Livengood and Gazelle Amber Valentine had had been in post-production since 2009.
Now enter screenwriter Darius Marder, who not only worked as a writer on ‘The Place Beyond the Pines’ but was ultimately approached by Cianfrance personally to re-work “Metalhead” from the beginning.
PERFOMANCES
‘Sound Of Metal’ is that rare and bold sort of indie fare every actor dreams of being a part of; with the potential of catapulting its leads to instant stardom.
This rings most true for Riz Ahmed; who turns in a career-defining performance so nuanced and grounded as the hearing impaired Ruben, that it’s all too easy to forget you’re watching a film.
The dedication to character saw Ahmed learning ASL (American Sign Language) during pre-production while spending 6-months learning to play the drums.
The same commitment was shown by co-star Olivia Cooke, who according to Darius Marder, played guitar and sung live during filming.
Significant consideration was further taken in order to represent the deaf community as authentically as possible. With the casting of multiple deaf and/or hard-of-hearing actors for their respective roles, it comes to no surprise if at times it feels like you’re watching a genuine documentary.
The casting of Paul Raci as the founder of a deaf rehab facility embodies this notion even further. Although not personally deaf himself, Raci is the son of deaf parents. His fluency of ASL is on full display here with a weighted performance that continually grounds the film in its desired authenticity.
MUSIC & SOUND DESIGN
Perhaps the most prevailing and applauded element of ‘Sound Of Metal’ is the film’s achievement in sound design.
The monumental task of creating the film’s complex and unique soundscape fell on none other than composer and sound designer Nicolas Becker who’s former credits include Academy Award-winning ‘Gravity’ and ‘Arrival’. At Becker’s suggestion, he and Marder met in Paris during production and the two experienced 10 minutes of absolute silence and darkness in an anechoic chamber.
“When you’re in it, you start hearing the sound of your tendons and the blood flowing through your body.”
As hearing loss happens, Becker notes, the sound of your own body gets louder, which certainly becomes a metaphor for the isolation Ruben begins to feel.
Achieving this feeling of isolation took a reported 20 weeks of mixing and utilized sensitive microphones and a stethoscope in order to capture Ahmed’s breathing, voice and even his muscle movements.
By correctly mimicking hearing loss, Becker had successfully connected us to Ruben’s struggles via our cognitive memory of our own audio experience.
Music along with sound design plays a pivotal role in the film’s narrative as well. Becker would work in close collaboration with the director’s brother, Abraham Marder in order to create the minimalist score.
A cristal baschet — a rare organ made of glass shafts and played with wet fingers to produce vibrating sound — became the core instrument.
“It is the sound of metal,” Becker notes in an interview with Variety magazine.
“That vibration helped represent Ruben’s inner thoughts as his hearing deteriorates.”
THEME
As the film unfolds, it becomes quite apparent early on that we will be experiencing a sudden and irreversible change in Ruben’s life.
How he handles this change is probably the most profound take away of the film.
Ruben maintains a naturally fierce and futile resistance when faced with his rapid hearing loss. Even after submitting to his partner’s request to enter rehabilitation for the deaf, he drives himself broke while attempting to regain his hearing via cochlear surgical implants.
Much to his dismay, he realizes soon after that the damage to his hearing is indeed permanent and irreversible and the implants do little to improve his confidence or situation.
It isn’t until the final scenes of the film where Ruben begins to understand and fully accept this new reality in a poetic moment of solitude and stillness as described to him by Joe during their time together in rehab.
In the Pandemic era, I find this notion of acceptance to be a very prevalent theme in today’s society as we must all navigate a new reality in our own way; If only to find ourselves grateful for what we have in life rather than what we’ve lost.
‘Sound of Metal’ had its world premiere within the Platform Prize program at the 2019 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) and marks Darius Marder’s directorial debut.
What did you all think of the film? Let me know in the comments.
Stay tuned for more!
