Written by Andreas Babiolakis

We are playing catch up by reviewing films that are a part of the current awards season.

The premise of Darius Marder’s 2019 festival darling, 2020 latecomer, and 2021 awards season dark horse Sound of Metal is simple: a hardcore noise drummer who has battled with substance abuse in the past is now losing his hearing, and has to make concerned sacrifices to either 1) keep up his drumming, or 2) start a new life someway else. That’s not the primary focus for Marder, and his film makes that clear very quickly. Drummer Ruben’s hearing begins to deteriorate very quickly into this two hour film, even to the point of legal deafness. The film isn’t going to be exploring this process, but rather the recuperation afterwards. For this boldness, Sound of Metal can easily stick in your mind for time to come. Without spoiling too much, the relationships Ruben makes (whilst coming to terms with his hearing loss at a shelter for deaf addicts in the process of recovery) and tries to keep (mainly his bandmate, recovery plus one, and life partner Lou).

Narratively, Sound of Metal is a little scant, but its emphasis lies in how this story is told. Quickly, some shout outs for the under loved aspects: Daniël Bouquet’s cinematography is so lush and naturalistic, and the pacing created by Mikkel E.G. Nielsen’s editing is gently fluid (both elements help spark the more poetic nature of this picture). Now, the obvious saving graces here. Firstly Riz Ahmed’s committed performance as Ruben is astonishing. Ahmed is the kind of actor that doesn’t have to act. He just is whatever character he decides to be. Sure, when Ruben loses his cool or gets emotional, that’s where Ahmed’s acting shines.

However, even Ruben just being normal (and not feeling like he is trying to be the centre of the scene) is fascinating to watch, because of how real this character feels under Ahmed’s control. It’s about time he gets the leading role of a picture like this (likely thanks to his work with the miniseries The Night Of, but his supporting work in cinema has always been at least interesting to watch). Ahmed is matched by a great cast, including Olivia Cooke as Lou (who is dealing with a lot of her own emotional realizations during the film) and Paul Raci as Ruben’s mentor throughout a majority of the picture (whose touching performance will likely move you close to tears).

Riz Ahmed as Ruben is absolutely sublime to watch; from his dramatic moments, down to the minutiae of his character that he makes a spectacle.

Secondly, the sound design (from the mixing to the editing) is easily the best of 2020, and must be the shoe-in to win any awards heading its way. The rudimentary scenes were great enough: the mixing of Ruben’s concerts; the tenderness of birds chirping outside as the breeze sifts past us; the tapping of hands upon a surface. Then, the sound gets a bit more complicated, when Ruben’s hearing starts to go, and you begin to experience what little noise he is able to pick up; just the ability to pick up enough at certain points so we get the gist of what is being said is tricky to pull off. Finally, the grand finale will send you over the edge (I don’t want to spoil what it is, but you’ll know exactly what I mean when you watch the film); it’s sound creation wizardry at its finest, and its mission to place you in Ruben’s shoes is more than successful.

Yes, Sound of Metal is strong in how you experience this story, but the story itself can be a bit flimsy (enough to be unable to shake off for these strengths either). My primary issue is the conclusion, which is full of enough plot holes and silly narrative conveniences, that the entire film suffers a little bit as a result. Without spoiling, the timing of this final act is just far too coincidental (especially who is there for it) for me to be able to suspend my disbelief. Underneath that are questions that could have been answered but aren’t tended to whatsoever (what happens to Ruben for that amount of time?). It’s a shame, because so many powerful things happen during this act as well, including some of the most touching moments of the entire film (the literal final scene is such an example).

On the other hand, I can’t be too mad, since Marder and company did avoid some clichés that Sound of Metal could have easily gunned for, like making Ruben — a former addict — relapse as a plot device. Instead, Marder equates losing a sense with the scare of losing something you love to the point of developing a fixation on keeping this sense at any cost, and that’s daring enough to call for some redemption. Safe to the point of dissatisfaction in some ways, and bold in others, the uneven story of Sound of Metal is a bit of a truth to face, but the rest of the film’s glory is a must-watch.

Andreas Babiolakis has a Masters degree in Film and Photography Preservation and Collections Management from Ryerson University, as well as a Bachelors degree in Cinema Studies from York University. His favourite times of year are the Criterion Collection flash sales and the annual Toronto International Film Festival.