The best movie of the year is now available on amazon prime

Published on December 4, 2020

Sound of Metal hits like a ton of bricks. It is just one huge wallop of an emotional experience. For my money, it’s the best movie of the year, and it’s now available to stream on Amazon Prime. From writer and director Darius Marder, who co-wrote The Place Beyond the Pines, comes a visceral experience that couldn’t feel more pure.

Over the last few years, Riz Ahmed has been garnering waves of acclaim. Ahmed broke out bigtime with the HBO miniseries, The Night Of, even though he had a few great performances before then (shoutout to Four Lions and Nightcrawler). In Sound of Metal, he does one helluva disappearing act as Ruben Stone. Ruben is a drummer in a two-member punk band led by his partner, Lou (Olivia Cooke). They’re touring in an RV across the country, playing loud and passionate gigs. They love each other, are arguably co-dependent, and found each other when they needed somebody. Ruben is a recovering heroin addict, and Lou suffers from depression. 

During their tour, it doesn’t take Ruben long to realize something is wrong. The drummer’s hearing is suffering at a rapid pace. One night, he can’t hear anything or play straight. When the drummer goes to a doctor, he’s hit with bad news, which he fights to dismiss. He wants to keep playing drums, but Lou accepts the reality Ruben doesn’t. Without going too much further into the scarce plot, which the movie doesn’t have or need much of, Ruben goes to live in a community for deaf people. 

From beginning to end, Sound of Metal is authentic. Marder’s film never gives into cliches, conventions, or easy answers and solutions. Nothing is easy in this movie. Nobody gets what they want or what they’re looking for, making it all the more painful and realistic. It’s messy, and a conflict is never tied with a bow.  

There are moments of light, humor, and kindness that are equally as strong as the pain on display, too. There are some beautiful moments that always come from simplicity, not grandiosity. Just a pleasant interaction, a moment of basic empathy and understanding, and a small but loving gesture hits so hard in this movie. There’s levity in Sound of Metal, but it usually comes from genuine interactions, not a gag or a joke to lighten things up. There’s a lot of beauty in Ruben, Lou, and the rest of the ensemble that makes their pain all the more tragic to experience.

That’s why Sound of Metal is one of the best movies of the year, although I say it’s the best. Marder and Ahmed let you hear the world through Ruben’s ears so viscerally. It’s the most I’ve been on a movie’s wavelength all year, feeling every emotion in my gut. It’s an experience without any self-consciousness. During plenty of great movies, we may find ourselves thinking, “Wow, what a great scene. What a great performance. What a great shot,” instead of feeling those moments. 

In Sound of Metal, the analysis comes later after the credits roll. You’re feeling this movie, not thinking about it until later. Achieving that effect is an incredible accomplishment for a filmmaker, making it all the more impressive that this is Marder’s feature-length narrative debut.

20 minutes into Sound of Metal, I wondered, “When is Olivia Cooke going to show up?” She was wonderful in Me, Earl, and the Dying Girl and a bunch of other movies. Then I finally realized — she’s Lou. Both Cooke and Ahmed completely disappear here, as every actor does. It’s such a convincing and tangible reality presented in Sound of Metal that you forget you’re watching a movie and find yourself immersed and caring deeply for the men and women on-screen, not only Ruben and Lou. It’s a beautiful, all-encompassing experience unlike any other this year.

Jack Giroux is a Staff Writer at Grit Daily. Based in Los Angeles, he is an entertainment journalist who's previously written for Thrillist, Slash Film, Film School Rejects, and The Film Stage.

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