Sound of Metal (2020) * * *

 

Directed by:  Darius Marder

Starring:  Riz Ahmed, Olivia Cooke, Paul Raci, Mathieu Almaric

Ruben (Ahmed) is a drummer in a two-person band with his longtime girlfriend Lou (Cooke) who one day suffers massive, almost immediate hearing loss.   It just happened.   He can no longer play the drums because he can no longer hear the music.   This is devastating for Ruben, who has made a living touring and playing drums.   Living in an RV with Lou and touring from town to town, Ruben must now find another purpose in life.   We learn Ruben is also four years clean from heroin addiction, but the hearing loss may trigger a relapse.   He and Lou find a rehab of sorts run by Joe (Raci), a Vietnam veteran who lost his hearing in the war.    Joe has his doubts as to whether his facility which assists other hearing impaired people can truly help Ruben.   

Thanks to Ahmed's quiet, empathy-inspiring performance, we learn more about Ruben as the onion layers are peeled back on his life.   He is unable to be at peace.   He is forever in forward motion, not because he is goal-oriented, but because he doesn't know how to be still.   As Joe puts it, he doesn't reach the "silence" which can be so beneficial to a soul at rest.   To Ruben, being still means he is forced to confront demons instead of running from them.   

Sound of Metal has its share of moments of emotional clarity even in the morass of sound and fury.  Ruben sells his RV and Lou goes home to Paris so Ruben can stay with Joe and pay for a procedure to help restore some of his hearing.   This is not a smooth process.  There are times Ruben can hear clearly, other times he is assaulted by waves of sound especially in the hustle of life.   Most of what Ruben hears is muddled and unclear, almost like Charlie Brown's parents.   I would not be surprised if the sound department of Sound of Metal is not rewarded with an Oscar win or two as a practical co-star in the film.

Paul Raci also deserves an Oscar nomination as Joe, who truly wants the best for Ruben, but knows Ruben better than Ruben knows himself.   Joe has seen too many addicts like Ruben come and go.  Raci delivers the most powerful moment in the movie when he tells Ruben he can no longer allow him to stay.   It breaks Joe's heart and ours.   

Some may find Sound of Metal too quiet or perhaps having too many moments without forward dramatic motion.   It won't be for everyone, but I found I cared for Ruben.   I didn't want to see him relapse and I wanted him to find purpose...and at least some peace.   Sound of Metal finds a way to get there.