Sound of Metal

 

When metal drummer Ruben (Riz Ahmed) suffers sudden hearing loss, it threatens his livelihood and upends his life, placing the former heroin addict at risk for a relapse. His girlfriend and bandmate Lou (Olivia Cooke) convinces the reluctant Ruben to stop performing and stay at a rehab facility for the deaf run by Joe (Paul Raci), a deaf Vietnam vet and recovering alcoholic. Ruben bonds with others in the deaf community while saving up for cochlear implants to restore his hearing, which puts him at odds with Joe, who rejects the idea that deafness is a disability.

 

Writer Darius Marder’s directorial debut has the ring of truth to it thanks to inspired sound design and a strong lead performance. The film fluctuates between louder and quieter and between clearer and more garbled relative to Ruben’s hearing, simulating deafness for a hearing audience. This, coupled with the use of ASL (Raci, the son of deaf parents, is a certified sign language interpreter) and deaf actors in supporting roles, paints a realistic picture of living with deafness in contrast to the patronizing “inspirationally disadvantaged” clichés. It’s a depiction furthered by Ahmed’s transformative performance. Lanky, bleached blond, and tattoo-covered, he imbues Ruben with both trepidation and determination, the fear of losing everything as well as the will to prevent it from happening.

 

While Sound of Metal’s dialogue is a bit stagey at times (and Joe’s spiel is as preachy to the audience as it is to Ruben), the film’s biggest liability by far is its sluggish pace. Sadly, this does not come as a surprise given the creators involved. Marder is again collaborating with Derek Cianfrance, for whom he wrote The Place Beyond the Pines, which managed to make a heist film boring. Yes, this is a character study, and yes “savor the quiet moments” is very much the film’s point, but the lack of momentum, coupled with underdeveloped secondary characters (Cooke does good work in limited screentime, but Lou's family drama feels tacked-on), are very nearly the film’s undoing.

 

All told, Sound of Metal is neither an easy nor a particularly enjoyable film to watch, but its intentions as well as Ahmed’s top-notch work make it worthwhile.