Welcome back to another issue of Your Movie Mage, where I discuss underrated movies across genres. Last week, we discussed the movie adaptation of the coming-of-age book by the same name, “The Perks of Being a Wallflower.” This week we’ll be discussing another heart wrenching and simultaneously inspiring and heartwarming film, “The Sound of Metal.”
“The Sound of Metal” follows musician Ruben, played by Riz Ahmed, as he deals with his recent, sudden hearing loss. Being a musician, he naturally is heavily impacted by this new way of life. He and his girlfriend, Lou, played by Olivia Cooke, live together in a van, touring the country playing their music. We learn right away that both of them have struggled historically, Ruben with addiction and Lou with depression and self-harm.
Their past makes it clear that these struggles are a big deal, not only for Ruben, but for Lou as well, who fears what’ll happen to her if she sees Ruben fall into bad habits. She knows that he has to get to a place where he’s okay for her to remain okay. They decide to send Ruben to live in a rehab center specifically geared to deaf addicts.
Ruben reluctantly agrees to go and plans to pursue surgery to get cochlear implants so he can return to Lou and they can continue their dreams as musicians. While Ruben finds community and joy at the center, he figures his life will go back to normal once he receives the surgery. The center also discourages people from attempting to “cure” their deafness, which getting the cochlear implants falls under.
Ruben knows this and pursues the surgery anyway, but he is ultimately disappointed with the results. He’s forced to leave the center that had provided him with work and healthy relationships and finds Lou, who has changed considerably in the time they were apart. They speak and find that at this point in their lives, they are no longer good for one another, and they are best staying apart.
This ending is unexpected but works really well in this film. The movie is left somewhat ambiguous in terms of what Ruben will end up doing. We see that he’s able to accept his situation as he removes his implants for a moment of silence, something he was told at the rehab center was a good thing to do.
This film shows the viewers that no matter the difficult circumstances you find yourself in, you can continue. Ruben is in a situation where just about everything has been lost—his hearing, his dreams of being a musician and his long-term relationship. He had a complete lack of control over all of this but is able to adjust and accept, something that everyone has to learn to do in their life.
The movie was shot beautifully and the choices with audio were standout. The way it’s filmed is incredibly captivating and elevates the story to another level. With scenic shots and a creative perspective, the viewer feels the quiet, even when there’s audio. The acting shines with every single person involved, making every character feel real. Ahmed did an amazing job portraying the anger and frustration his character feels throughout the film. Cooke too was able to capture the struggle of having to accept you’ve grown apart from someone you loved, as well as showing how hard it is to help someone going through something difficult.
“Sound of Metal” tells a very intriguing story, with beautiful cinematography, audio and acting, making it an amazing movie to watch. For this, I give this film an underratedness score of 4/5. The movie has received a lot of praise, rightfully so, but I still find that there are many people who haven’t seen or heard of it.