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Shot in black and white, "Mank" focuses on
writer Herman J. Mankiewicz as he works on 1941 cinema classic
"Citizen Kane," considered by many the greatest movie of all
time. Mankiewicz and director Orson Welles battled over who
would be credited for the screenplay.
"Mank" was directed by David Fincher and based on a screenplay
penned by his father, Jack, who died in 2003. Fincher said he
wanted the movie to bring to life the process of filmmaking and
the colorful personalities behind it.
"This was a really wonderful sandbox," Fincher said at a recent
online screening of "Mank."
"You had a great character at the center of it who can expound
very delightfully on everything that he encounters. And he was a
great avatar to take a look at Hollywood in its heyday."
"Mank" has charmed many film critics, earning an 89% positive
rating on the Rotten Tomatoes website, which aggregates movie
reviews.
Gary Oldman, who plays Mank, said he performed without
prosthetics or props that have helped him in other roles.
"I'm glad we went that route because there's no tricks, there's
no fireworks, there's no wigs, there's no false noses, there's
no prosthetics, there's no padding," Oldman said. "It's just raw
and there it is."
The filmmakers recreated 1930s film sets and studio lots,
replicating the fashion as well as the lighting and editing
styles used at the time.
Amanda Seyfried, who plays actress Marion Davies, said the "Mank"
sets were "surreal."
"I was enveloped in this era, this golden age of Hollywood on
the lot," she told Reuters via Zoom.
(Reporting by Rollo Ross and Jill Serjeant; Writing by Lisa
Richwine; Editing by Tom Brown)
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