Mank

To know if one should watch Mank, David Fincher's latest film since Gone Girl and the latest release on Netflix, the first question should be 'Have I seen Citizen Kane?' and then 'Do I know a lot about the history behind the film?' If the answer to both is 'Yes' then Mank will be of interest to you as Fincher's first film released on the streaming service won't be for everyone. 

Citizen Kane is regarded as one of the best films of all time and I can't argue against that. It's not a film I'd say I love as it's too cold to easily put on to rewatch but it deserves its status no doubt. It's about the life of a young tycoon, Charles Foster Kane, who loses his way as he becomes more and more successful over the course of his life, and it's widely believed the influence for the story came from real-life tycoon William Randolph Hearst who screenwriter Mank spent some time with. Billed as 'Starring, written and directed' by Orson Welles, the film was a huge success for him, and Fincher's film Mank explores the controversial story that it was in fact Herman J. Mankiewicz (Gary Oldman) who wrote the entire script. A theory which has since been debunked. 

The story here follows the unhealthy, alcoholic and disillusioned Mankiewicz sent out to a cabin in the desert to recover after a car crash and begin writing CK as per Welles' instruction who has just been given cart blanche by RKO to make whatever film he would like. Oldman portrays the witty Mankiewicz as a self-destructive yet mostly charming intellectual caught in the ostentatious world of powerful studio producers, attractive actors who he regularly flirts with despite being married and Hearst himself, played by Charles Dance who steals the film. Fincher splits the ongoing troubles of writing the highly ambitious film with flashbacks to Mankiewicz in the 1930s as America was coming out of its depression and how this all came to influence his story.

Written by his late father, this was a passion project for Fincher and is widely different from anything he's made up until this point. His colour scheme is replaced with black-and-white, the cinematography mimics the noir aspects from the films at the time, even the sound design is pulled back and also gone is the moody score we often experience with Fincher's work; instead Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross go period for that old timey feel. If it wasn't for Neftlix's insistence on shooting digital instead of film then the atmosphere would be complete as Fincher even adds cigarette burn marks to the screen. Something he hasn't used since Fight Club but despite all this work, Mank just doesn't quite work for me.

Fincher, infamously known for rigid way of filmmaking, gets off to a disappointing and messy start that lacked focus, and the story never quite had me engaged as the film spreads itself too thin while expecting viewers to know all there is about 1940s Hollywood and the political scene at the time. There's a great idea in here as we see how Mank's surroundings shape a story he wants to tell that comments on the society he lives in even if it means losing friendships and burning bridges but Fincher's ambitious approach comes away missing the mark.

The Oscars love films about old Hollywood and I'm sure they'll lap this up thanks to good performances from the likes of Oldman, Amanda Seyfried, Tom Burke as Welles and of course Charles Dance who is perfect as Hearst. There are even times where Fincher had my full attention as he creates drama in a few standout moments but these are few and there are many scenes that trail on to an unnecessary degree which will turn many off.

I like Fincher and I like film history so this should have won me over but the story needed a sharper focus to be accessible. Just look at The Social Network which juggles a number of different plotlines yet it keeps the audience informed and engaged effortlessly that made it one of the best films from the last decade. While on a technical level with its visuals, sound and music Mank can be seen as an achievement, Fincher's treatment with the story makes this one just for cinephiles unfortunately and will leave everyone else disappointed.