Mank

This is a version of a review airing on ABC Radio Ballarat and South West Victoria on January 29, 2021.

(M) ★★★★

Director: David Fincher.

Cast: Gary Oldman, Amanda Seyfried, Lily Collins, Arliss Howard, Tom Pelphrey, Charles Dance, Sam Troughton, Ferdinand Kingsley, Tuppence Middleton, Tom Burke, Joseph Cross, Jamie McShane.

"Here's to oversized novelty triangles."

Citizen Kane is the greatest movie of all time and the story behind its creation and its release is almost as rich as Gregg Toland's stunning cinematography, Orson Welles' masterful direction, and that sizzling screenplay. Many words have been spent untangling the mystery behind that legendary screenplay. Is it purely the work of Herman J Mankiewicz, or does a co-credited Welles deserve his share of the accolades for the Oscar-winning script?

David Fincher's first film since Gone Girl touches on this question but is more interested in figuring out why Mankiewicz (Oldman) wrote the script in the first place. As Mank recovers from a broken leg and tries to stay sober while penning Citizen Kane, we see in flashbacks the key moments that led him to write a screenplay that was a thinly veiled swipe at one of America's most powerful men and effectively ended Mank's career.

From a fine script penned by his late dad, the film ably showcases father-and-son's love of Citizen Kane. Fincher and cinematographer Erik Messerschmidt ape Toland's revolutionary deep focus and even mimic exact shots from the Welles' classic. They hint at easter eggs and revel in the era. The black-and-white aesthetic (apparently a studio sticking point that preventing the film being made 20 years earlier) is richly noirish in places and even gothic on occasion (not unlike Citizen Kane), and matched by some beautiful production design and costuming.

But the adoration of '30s and '40s Hollywood, with a sharp focus on Welles' masterpiece, blinkers the film somewhat. It's hard to see non-cinephiles being transfixed by this as a biopic if they have no interest in Citizen Kane and the machinations of Tinsel Town in that period. The tension is minimal, the obstacles are few, and the drama is insignificant.

This is even in spite of Oldman's fascinating performance as Mank. Disappearing into the role as he always does, he again confirms his reputation as one of the all-time greats, making Mank both the legendary wit and self-destructive sot he supposedly was.

A strong cast of side characters drift in and out (Seyfried leaves the biggest impression as Hearst's mistress Marion Davies) - perhaps too many, truth be told. Burke does a fine Orson Welles impersonation, Howard is good as studio head Louis B Mayer, and Collins is fine in support as Mank's secretary, but this is really Oldman's show. His star far outshines anyone else in his vicinity.

For those of us who love Citizen Kane as much as Fincher, Mank is a godsend. But the reality is there's little here for the casual passer-by beyond a finely crafted film with a great lead performance and sharp dialogue, but a story of little consequence and even less drama. This will be enough for the cineastes, so if that's you, enjoy.