In
Mank, there’s a scene where screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz, played by
Gary Oldman, awakens disoriented in a California mansion. He soon wanders out back to a film set, where he encounters two studio bigwigs. One of them is Louis B. Mayer, the co-founder of MGM. The other is Irving G. Thalberg, a producer who has his own Academy Award named after him. Thalberg has to explain to Mayer who “Mank” is, even though he co-wrote one of their movies (just as he co-wrote, or depending on who you ask, wrote
Citizen Kane, often considered the greatest movie ever made).
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When director David Fincher called to tell costume designer Trish Summerville that his long talked-about film “Mank” starring Gary Oldman as “Citizen Kane” screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz had gotten the green light, she knew it was destined to be “smart, funny, poignant, beautiful; it would tick all the boxes!”
“I definitely jumped at the chance,” says Summerville, who worked with Fincher on numerous other projects, though never before on a black and white feature film. “Besides a great story, with David I knew it was going to be incredible. I love working with him, and aside from this, he’s one of my favorite humans.”
Herman J. Mankiewicz (played by
Gary Oldman). The nonlinear story depicts the Oscar-winning writer during both his heyday in Hollywood and later, nearing the end of his career when he’s writing the script for
Citizen Kane. It’s a story that transitions through swaths of time without a single bump in the road, except the one that leaves Mankiewicz convalescing in bed.
The wordsmith is his own worst enemy and his own best friend, but he’s also admirable through Fincher’s lens. There’s a bit of hero worship on display for this artist learning to fight for due credit when
Gary Oldman as Herman Mankiewicz and Amanda Seyfried as Marion Davies. Picture: NETFLIX
- Credit: NETFLIX
Royston’s community cinema reopens this weekend with a programme of films ahead of Christmas.
Amanda Seyfried as Marion Davies, Gary Oldman as Herman Mankiewicz and Jamie McShane as Shelly Metcalf in Mank, which can be seen at Royston Picture Palace. Picture: NETFLIX
- Credit: NETFLIX
Based in Royston Town Hall, Mank (12A) will be the first film screened at Royston Picture Palace following the second national lockdown.
Starring Gary Oldman, Amanda Seyfried and Charles Dance, Mank can be seen at the cinema in Melbourn Street on Friday, December 18 at 7.30pm.