Sound of Metal
2020 · Directed by Darius Marder
Original language: English
- drama
- music
The story
Metal drummer Ruben begins to lose his hearing. When a doctor tells him his condition will worsen, he thinks his career and life is over. His girlfriend Lou checks the former addict into a rehab for the deaf hoping it will prevent a relapse and help him adapt to his new life. After being welcomed and accepted just as he is, Ruben must choose between his new normal and the life he once knew.
What it’s like
Raw, close handheld camera hugs Riz Ahmed's face and hands, so the film feels like it is happening inside the drummer's skull. Its palette runs on cold, flat daylight in Missouri trailers and tour vans, then warm amber in a rehab's wooden rooms, and the camera lingers on sign language and tactile objects with patient, unhurried framing. The sound design is the real subject: tinnitus-thin whine, muffled and warped mixes that drop out into near silence, then the thud of a kick drum returning like a memory. Its vibe is quiet grief with a bruised, hopeful undertow, the kind of film that suits a late, unhurried night alone or a considered weekend watch. Pacing is patient and observational, with long scenes that let silence do the work, and the emotional arc follows a proud man slowly learning to be still and to be seen. Intensity is moderate: some addiction and relapse-related distress, a few sharp outbursts, one brief self-harm moment, and no gore. It is for viewers who want a grounded, sensory, humane drama about identity and acceptance.
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