Sound of Metal

Riz Ahmed is one of those actors, you simply cannot take your eyes off. It's not solely because of his good looks. He's always intense and, most importantly, he always makes you care about the characters he's portraying. In this case, he portrays a rock drummer who is losing his hearing.

As with most of his roles, he more than did his homework. Ahmed moved to Brooklyn for a few months and learned to play drums, he also spent a lot time with people from the deaf community. He showed the same dedication for his Naz Khan role in 'The Night Of', he immersed himself in the character's background. Expect no less from this actor.

Having two partially deaf relatives, I could relate to this film. Especially one relative who refused to learn sign language, they would rather read lips. Thinking of my relatives initially denying their hearing loss, this film really hit home.

Why are people bringing up Riz being Pakistani? With every role, will he continue to be defined by his background? His character was named Ruben, it's assumed his character was Hispanic. Riz can play other nationalities and ethnic groups beyond his own South Asian background. He can certainly pass for Hispanic, especially in this film. When considering Riz for a role, directors and producers should think outside the box.

The ending was extremely effective, but not a surprise at all.

Another excellent performance from Riz Ahmed. A few more films like this and he will finally have earned his Oscar.

My husband has hearing loss and this movie made him weep. It also helped me to understand what he was experiencing. The script is extraordinary as is the acting. I hope they do well that the awards, they deserve it.

"When this crappy, mundane world suddenly becomes radiant and magnificent...all the fear is gone."

This film is an achievement on pretty much all levels. A simple yet complex story, Sound of Metal brings a lot to the table. Riz Ahmed plays Ruben, a drummer whose hearing is rapidly deteriorating. He does an amazing job. Similar to Sally Hawkins in The Shape of Water, some of the acting is silent and mainly in ASL. When not using ASL, he ranges from quiet moments to high, extreme levels of acting. Beforehand, I wasn't quiet sure how he would do. The buzz around his performance kept building, even though some hadn't even seen the film. I don't think they could've found a better actor in the scenario. This is a career defining performance and I can't wait to see what happens with it come awards season. And I would be remiss if I didn't mention Olivia Cooke and Paul Raci. Raci has the second most screentime-at least I think-and he has some really impactful scenes. Mainly, his dialogue is strong. Like Ahmed, he uses both English and ASL but primarily ASL. I wanted a little more with his character because he is there as guidance for Ruben. I could compare him to Sam Elliott in A Star is Born. Raci is the voice of judgment and has some meaty scenes. The difference is we don't delve quite as much into his character, at least as much as I wanted to. And Cooke is also a voice of judgement, but as the girlfriend. Not too much for character development or defining scenes, but the genuine performance makes up for it. I'm glad the film takes a different approach and not the typical girlfriend we might see in this type of film. She's there to help and not there to cause any drama. The casting from the lead to the small roles are all great.

This is a screenplay heavy film. Not in the sense of dialogue, but rather the description and what is happening. I haven't seen the screenplay or anything like that, but you can just tell. Darius Marder directed this extremely well. He co-wrote with Abraham Marder and the story is by Derek Cianfrance, so he has a great sense of what he wants to convey. Through tone, sound, and what is shown on screen, he hit everything right. The only thing I would like to fix with the writing and directing is some of the pacing. As I mentioned before, the film is focused on the quiet, tender moments. Sometimes this means there's not much happening. It's clever to have this but the film can feel slow at times. The runtime is 130 minutes and about 10 could've been cut down. I don't know where it could have used the most cuts but a little bit could've been helpful.

Besides the acting, writing, and directing, the sound design is one of the shining achievements. The whole film is beaded around sound. But the way they edited and mixed everything actually puts you in Ruben's headspace. You are becoming hearing with him. Then there's moments where we hear what is actually happening as a non deaf/hearing-impaired individual. Those moments of realization aid in the experience. Emotion is built with that choice. Now there's a decision made by Ruben and it's part of what we can hear with him. I'm so glad we could be part of that. The only time something like that has been done was in the TV series Undone. The sound design there is so spectacular that it could win a majority of the sound awards. If there's one thing that you can take from this film, it's that sound is a virtue.

I was incredibly fortunate to have seen Sound of Metal at the Toronto International Film Festival including a Q&A after with the director and cast. Whereas a lot of films may take the storyline into melodramatic territory, Sound of Metal explores not only the reality of those who are deaf which is so poorly represented in film and television but also the destructive nature and high cost of denial and self-deception in the face of hard truths.

By focusing on someone whose entire existence revolves around a world of sound losing that which defines his life, it gives the viewer pause to consider what life can be like when we learn to accept and let go. There is so much more to life than the small corners of existence we live in and this film paints that reality with both tremendous empathy and a bluntness that lesser writers and directors would avoid.

In addition, one really has to commend the direction and design of this film's audio. It is clear that a great deal of thought went into how to use sound in this film. From the in-your-face pounding of metal music at the start through the muffled reality as the protagonist loses his hearing to the sense of peace in the moments of silence, it is clear that a great deal of painstaking detail was crafted in conveying this film's reality.

Sound of Metal is one of those films which will keep you thinking for days after about so many aspects of life such as addiction and how some relationships may simply serve a purpose in the short term for our life but ultimately must be let go. How it illuminates aspects of the deaf community that few get a chance to see is important. But there is so much more to this film that to pigeonhole it as merely being about deaf people does a grand disservice to the many fantastic qualities in every aspect of its creation. I highly recommend taking the time to watch this film.

Confession: I'm a total sucker for recovery stories - maybe it is the former social worker in me. Now, some people might suggest this movie's about music or the deaf community, but I honesty believe it is about saving (and accepting) ourselves. It is about the addictions that define us, whether we're embracing or surrendering them...and the people that help heal us along the way. In other words, it IS a recovery story. And it is also flawlessly done. The performances are intimate, the sounds/silences keep drawing you in, and the moments of stillness are absolutely breathtaking. Marder's crafted something that feels so personal and authentic, an invitation into these characters' lives and experiences. When the credits rolled, I just sat there taking it in.