Mank (2020), starring Gary Oldman as alcoholic screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz is intended to be watched as it might have been seen in the era about which it was written. In case you’re not familiar with this character, the portrayal is based upon real life American screenwriter who wrote the screenplay for the film Citizen Kane (1941).
There are wonderful little nods all throughout the picture which indicate that you are, in fact, watching a 1930s piece of cinematography. The first indication to modern-day audiences that they have been taken back in time is the rolling of the opening credits which introduces the cast. This actually contrasts with Citizen Kane, one of the earliest films to have broken the tradition of rolling opening credits. The design of the wording itself is unmistakeably dated, further emphasised by the lettering disappearing off-screen in an abrupt, less-than-smooth manner.
Towards the end of the first natural pause in the story, keen-eyed viewers will notice a circular black changeover cue-mark which appears in the top right hand corner of the screen. This cue-mark appears periodically throughout the picture. Traditionally, a cue-mark is how film-makers inform the cinema projectionist that it is imminently the moment to switch the reels during a live screening of the film. Of course, on today’s digital platforms, no such reel-changing occurs, but it’s a nice details nonetheless for movie buffs who are most likely feeling withdrawal from going to a live cinema screening.
In terms of sound design, we hear the effect of the audio coming through in mono rather than stereo, which is how it would most likely have been received at the time (stereo sound was first revealed to audiences in 1935 – see video below titled “Train at Hayes”). Finally, one cannot miss the classic “lights down” effect which punctuates the end of scenes and flashbacks.
Photo credits to Netflix and Wikipedia.
Train at Hayes clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8hOOuVtcX4&ab_channel=UniversalMusicGroup try watching it with headphones!
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