Films/DVD Asylum

Posted by tunenut (A) on December 15, 2020 at 14:04:51

In Reply to: RE: "Mank" on Netflix posted by Victor Khomenko on December 15, 2020 at 07:15:48

I had doubts...the story of the writing of Citizen Kane seemed like a very slim thread for a 2 hour movie. But I found it quite fascinating. Names from the past...I had no clue how L.B. Mayer and William Hearst were connected...other people whose names were familiar but meant little...Irving Thalberg, Joe Mankiewisz.

Most of all, it is just a pleasure to watch. As one would hope in a movie about a witty screenwriter, the dialogue snaps along with witticisms from start to finish. I always had much respect for Fincher's cinematic vision and it is up to his standard here. Gary Oldman, once young, now old, played Churchill last year, and he immerses himself in this part deeply. If there is a bit of scenery chewing toward the end, that's minor. Some points are made about the pernicious effect of mass media on political advertising, and I'm not sure I buy all of that, but it's again a minor thing. I suppose I must rewatch Citizen Kane.