MANK
2020 | Dir. David Fincher | 131 Minutes
"Are you familiar with the parable of the organ grinder's monkey?"
Bedridden from an auto wreck, washed-up outspoken perpetually-drunk screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz is approached by wunderkind Orson Welles to write his first feature film. Channeling all of his disdain for his erstwhile social acquaintance William Randolph Hearst into the screenplay, Mankiewicz composes a sprawling thinly veiled indictment against the powerful newspaper baron: Citizen Kane.
David Fincher's Mank not only serves as an origin story for Citizen Kane but also a loving tribute to the canonized picture. Written by the director's late father Jack Fincher, slug lines displaying on screen for key scene transitions to accentuate the perspective of the story's screenwriter hero, the picture honors its protagonist as well as its writer. While dictating his screenplay to his amusingly prim assistant, and receiving varying degrees of admiration mixed prudent discouragement from assorted colleagues providing feedback upon completion, Mankiewicz recalls the circumstances that lead him to his association and subsequent falling out with Hearst, the real life basis for Charles Foster Kane, presented as a vain and spiteful man with enough wealth and influence to manipulate a gubernatorial election over a personal vendetta utilizing propaganda produced by a major film studio while idealistic artists are discarded for not toeing the company line. The script's non-linear story structure, heavily told through flashback, mirrors that of the celebrated Orson Welles classic. The pacing of the feature is somewhat plodding but its mesmerizing throwback aesthetic, snappy dialogue, and fantastic cast keep things consistently engaging, particularly for fans of Hollywood's golden age.
Fincher meticulously replicates the look and feel of Old Hollywood to create a fully immersive experience. Visually, the film is a monochrome recreation of motion pictures from a bygone era, from how the actors are lit to the way shots are framed to the method in which the film is edited down to the cigarette burns to signal film reel changes. Even the pseudo-mono audio mix emulates the sound of motion pictures from the 1940s with remarkable precision, surround sound utilized to replicate the distinct echo of a movie theater auditorium. Deserving the utmost praise, the moody jazzy period-appropriate score by frequent Fincher collaborators Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross is simply astonishing, particularly considering what a sonic departure it is from their repertoire.
Hands down, Gary Oldman delivers his best performance to date as Mankiewicz. Oldman effortlessly carries the film, absolutely convincing in his delivery of flustered drunken monologues, in brooding contemplative moments, and above all in selling the charm of an overconfident romantic. The only fault in Oldman's casting is the 20-year discrepancy between the actor's age and the age Mankiewicz would have been at the time. As beloved movie star Marion Davies, Hearst's lover and Mankiewicz's unlikely friend, Amanda Seyfried absolutely shines by subverting expectations through the natural grace and unassuming sharp intelligence she exudes. Charles Dance also stands out as Hearst, imposing as ever, a perfect fit for the role. The impressive cast also features Lily Collins as Mankiewicz's headstrong secretary Rita Alexander, Arliss Howard as heartless MGM head Louis B. Mayer, Tom Pelphrey as Mankiewicz's more level-headed brother Joseph, Tuppence Middleton as Mankiewicz's supportive wife Sara, Jamie McShane as tragic journeyman director Shelly Metcalf, Tom Burke as ethereal presence Orson Welles, and a surprising appearance by Bill Nye as failed California gubernatorial candidate Upton Sinclair.
Mank is a captivating though somewhat deliberately paced journey that's equal parts entertaining and timely, an amusing and utterly immersive companion piece to Citizen Kane. Through the voice of a troubled but brilliant artist, the picture explores how film studios coldly take advantage of their talent and how vindictive media moguls always have and always will use whatever means necessary to advance their often petty self-serving political agendas.
FRAGMENTS
- David Fincher intended to make Mank in the late 1990s starring Kevin Spacey and Jodie Foster but the project was stalled for years due to film studios objecting to Fincher's insistence on shooting the picture in black-and-white
- While the film posits that Mankiewicz is solely responsible for writing Citizen Kane without meaningful contribution from Orson Welles, this claim remains highly contested
