The Sound of Metal (2019)

The Sound of Metal (2019)

starring Riz Ahmed

directed by Darius Marder

121 minutes

Ruben Stone (Riz Ahmed) a drummer in a small metal band, starts to lose his hearing. He refuses to accept the reality of his situation. He wants to keep going playing. Lou, Ruben's girlfriend and the musical act's guitarist and singer, feels differently. Ruben used to do heroin regularly. He's been clean ever since he met Lou. She finds him a program for deaf people with drug problems.

Ruben doesn't want to stay there. Lou can't stay with him if he stays there. She insists. He agonizes over it but finally accepts her decision. Slowly he starts to become part of the community at the center for deaf addicts. He learns ASL (American Sign Language), he helps to teach hearing impaired kids at a nearby school, but he can't stop thinking about getting away.

Ruben finds out that Lou has continued to work on her music career, without him. Ruben sells his drum kit, the RV is which he and Lou used to tour, and all their gear. He raises enough money to get cochlear implants. Ruben is kicked out of the community for violating their rules. He goes to see Lou, once he gets the implants, in France where she is living with her father.

Ruben can see that she looks better than she did before. He sticks around briefly but once he sees a sign that his presence causes her to fall back into an old bad habit he decides to leave.

Thoughts

This is the third film in which I've seen Riz Ahmed. I also saw him in Nightcrawler (2014) and Rogue One (2016). Paul Raci played Joe, who runs the center for deaf addicts. He was also in Sing Sing (2023). Mathieu Almaric played Richard, Lou's father. He's been in a few other films I have seen including Quantum of Solace (2008).

I've been meaning to see this movie since it first came out. I'm glad that I finally did. It is very, very good. It is powerful in a subtle sort of way. It didn't hit me over the head with the points it was trying to make. Some things felt a little rushed but it is a movie that is trying to cover a lot of ground in just two hours. I can understand why some people take issue with it but I was very impressed and very moved by it.