Cinema Styles: Sound of Metal immersive act of empathy
Sound of Metal tells the story of Ruben Stone (Riz Ahmed), a heavymetal drummer and recovering heroin addict whose life is thrown into turmoil when he begins to lose his sense of hearing.
The film is a completely immersive experience. The audience often hears what Ruben hears, and experiences reality through the filter of his perspective. The film’s director, Darius Marder, has described the film as focusing on Ruben’s “point-of-sound”(a spin on the idea of point-ofview).
Sound is integral to this story, and it’s no surprise the movie earned an Oscar nomination for its sound design. It’s use is creative, unique, and invites the audience to be empathic with Ruben and his struggles. We’re with Ruben every step of the way. He experiences joy in both the loudness of the music he makes and the silence that exists in the space between sounds. The movie shows an appreciation for sound and silence alike, and both are presented as having great value.
Ruben Stone is brought to life by the great British actor Riz Ahmed, who has never given a bad performance, and this role is a career-best for him. His Oscar nomination for Best Actor is groundbreaking, as he’s the first Muslim actor to be nominated in that
Film: Sound of Metal (2021) Director: Darius Marder Starring: Riz Ahmed (Nightcrawler, Venom), Olivia Cooke (Ready Player One), Paul Raci Streaming Platform: Amazon Prime Rating: R Runtime: 120 minutes Genre: Drama
2021 Academy Award Nominations
Best Picture Best Actor — Riz Ahmed Best Supporting Actor — Paul Raci Best Sound Best Original Screenplay Best Editing
category.
Ahmed is a dedicated actor. He spent months learning the drums and American Sign Language, giving the character more authenticity and allowing himself to immerse more deeply into the role. Drumming and ASL are both physical, nonverbal forms of communication and they forced Ahmed to be more grounded in his body and learn to communicate more physically.
Removing his ability to communicate verbally was a challenge for Ahmed, who’s not only a skilled thespian, but also a successful rapper. His words are important to him, and this performance allowed him to leave his comfort zone to paint a truly beautiful portrait of a man trying to recapture something lost in his life. Ahmed depicts these experiences of Ruben perfectly, and does so primarily through his body language and eye movements.
Ahmed used the experience of filming this movie to gain a deeper understanding of the lives of people with hearing loss. While filming certain scenes, Ahmed had auditory blockers inserted into his ears so as to restrict himself from hearing noise. He used them during the scenes Ruben is most resistant to the changes he’s experiencing.
Ahmed confronted his own fears of quietude and found “in silence and stillness, you’re forced to face yourself.” This challenged the actor, but it also provided him with a more empathetic viewpoint of an often marginalized community of people. He came to the realization“deafness isn’t a disability but rather a culture” and “an invitation to connect more with others.”
The other actors in the film are also incredible, especially Olivia Cooke and Paul Raci. Cooke plays Ruben’s girlfriend and bandmate, Lou, and she portrays a variety of complex emotions as she helps Ruben along his tumultuous journey while also dealing with her own needs. Raci plays Joe, a mentor figure for Ruben, and his performance has earned him an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor.
Raci plays a deaf character in the film, and while he himself isn’t actually deaf, both of
his parents were. He’s a prominent figure in the deaf community as a CODA (Child of Deaf Adults) and a member of Hands of Doom, a Black Sabbath tribute band that performs in American Sign Language.
Sound of Metal is the directorial debut of Darius Marder. His skill as a director is remarkable for being a first-time filmmaker, and his career will be an exciting one to watch develop.
Sound of Metal is the journey of one man as he seeks to find peace in the midst of life-altering changes to his perception of reality. It’s a movie about senses, and thus it demands your full attention, both visually and aurally. Sound of Metal is an act of empathy, and it asks the viewer to look beneath the surface and imagine the experiences of people other than themselves.
Bobby Styles studied Film at UCLA, and worked as an editor and producer on several film, commercial, and music video projects in Los Angeles. He currently teaches the intermediate and advanced Video Production courses in the Multimedia & Technology Academy at Monache High School. His column appears in The Recorder every Tuesday.