Mank (2020)

I love David Fincher, I love Gary Oldman, I love Amanda Seyfried, I love Citizen Kane. I love the feel of Mank, I love the way it is shot, I love the fact I can almost smell the smoke of the cigarettes and taste the whisky in the glasses on screen. So why was I left so cold by the end of the film? Mank focuses on the story of Herman J. Mankiewicz, the man hired by Orson Welles to write the screenplay for Citizen Kane (1941). Told partially through flashbacks whilst he works on the script, Mank focuses on one particular possible true story of the writing of Citizen Kane (there are a few). Oldman is superb in the title role as you might expect, and there are some terrific supporting performances, but by the end I wasn't wondering whether this take on the tale might be true or not, I just didn't really care. It's good film making, no doubt, but I'm not convinced it's up there with Fincher's best. There have been plenty of excellent reviews of Mank from people and publications I swear by, and I will go back and re-watch it at some point, but for now, by all means seek it out. It's definitely worth your time, especially if you disagree with me completely, which it seems many of the critics do. The intent is there, indeed are so many aspects, but for some reason it simply doesn't keep you glued to the screen, like Fincher so often succeeds in doing. 6.6/10