Mank 2021. at DVinfo.net

Allan Black · April 26th, 2021, 03:50 PM

Best cinematography at the 2021 Oscars.

1930’s Hollywood is reevaluated through the eyes of scathing social critic and alcoholic screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz as he races to finish the screenplay of Citizen Kane (1941).

This is how cinematographer Erik Messerschmidt got the 1930s look in black and white …

https://www.red.com/mank

Available now on Netflix if I can steal my wife’s iPad for a look, although this is one movie you’d want to see on the big theatre screen.

Cheers.

Allan Black · April 28th, 2021, 04:49 PM

Mank is the pseudonym for the legendary Hollywood screen writer Herman J. Mankiewicz. I watched Netflixes ‘Mank’ on our Smart 55” Samsung, enjoying Erik Messerschmitts Oscar winning cinematography. He and his crew definitely achieved the early stark 1930s dramatic B&W film look. Mank had 10 Oscar nominations with Production Design winning best Oscar.

Spoiler Alert: If you didn’t read all of the link in the above post, it’s set during the time of the Great Depression, in 1930s Hollywood. No it’s not about a famous film star, it’s about Mank and his problems while actually writing his Oscar winning script for Orson Wells Citizen Kane, so maybe it won’t appeal to todays general audiences who might see it as an art film.

While some of the 2hr. dialogue is boring, the story is interesting with time proven cinema tricks. When ‘Orson Wells’ first appears his distinctive voice is carefully enunciated, so you know it is him. Same with ‘John Houseman.’ They also include the projectionist film reel change cues at the top right of the screen every 10 mins. Someone did a lot of research on writer Mankiewicz character, lead Garry Oldman nailed it being nominated for best actor and Amanda Seyfried won the Oscar as best supporting actress.

Would I join Netflix just to see it, yes, and I think it’ll be interesting to members on this forum, because it was shot with video cameras. In prep, Eric Messerschmitt evaluated a number of RED cameras including a prototype of KOMODO, a RED DSMC2 WEAPON  housing a color MONSTRO sensor and both a DRAGON 6K and HELIUM 8K MONOCHROME sensor in a RED RANGER body. No I don’t know any of that gear either but recent arthouse hits like Roma were shot in color and later converted to black and white, but that route would not offer the range of control Manks filmmakers required.

So maybe this’ll inspire folks here. If you can, watch it on a big ass Smart 4k TV. Maybe there’s a Netflix 30 day trial in your area.

Cheers.

Paul R Johnson · April 29th, 2021, 01:11 AM

The snag is that like all things art, it will appeal to some yet put off others. It leaves me totally unmoved of course, and I’ve no desire to even hunt for a trailer. I remember everyone being excited by the WW1 movie with the long continuous shot was it last year or the year before? I didn’t see that either. I’m not sure why I don’t watch movies any more, but the last movie I actually went to see, and paid for was the last Star Trek movie. I have Netflix, but have not found any movie I want to watch in the modern ones. I watch the old classic movies. I have never seen an X-Men movie or any of the Batman’s since Adam West one was on TV. They just stopped making my kind of movies. Watching a black and white movie would be fine, but I wont watch this as the story just doesn’t interest me. The technology is interesting, and I’ll happily read about it, but I’d be bored rigid in five minutes.

I do appreciate people who are really into movies, but I’ve realised it passes me by when the awards are on and I don’t know any of the titles, or the actors names. I had to google Reece Witherspoon to find out the other day if this was male or female?

I’ve also just discovered Rene Zellwigger is American

Doug Jensen · April 29th, 2021, 05:11 PM

Paul, you didn't miss anything. Mank was a boring, cliche' ridden, forgettable movie. I tried to watch it when it first came out and didn't get beyone the first 10 minutes. But I kept hearing about it so I gave it another chancea couple of weeks ago and watched it the whole way through. Waste of time. The cinematography was no better and no worse than any other comparable big-budget feature or modern high-end TV drama. It definitely was one of those movies that wanted to be taken for more than it really was. The B&W aspect was just a gimmick. And despite the glib dialog and music style that was clearly intended to indicate something "cool" was going on, it all fell flat on it's face.

Andrew Smith · April 29th, 2021, 08:17 PM

Guess that explains why it did so well at the Oscars. :-)

Andrew

Paul R Johnson · April 30th, 2021, 12:04 AM

I really thought I’d totally missed something.

Doug Jensen · April 30th, 2021, 06:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Andrew Smith

Guess that explains why it did so well at the Oscars. :-)

Andrew

If you are under the impression that winning a popularity contest, such as the Oscars or Grammys, in today’s world is an indication of a quality product, you are sadly mistaken.

Andrew Smith · April 30th, 2021, 06:59 AM

Hi Doug,

Actually, I was mocking the Hollywood system with that one. An over clichéd film getting so many nominations etc and yet still remaining very average.

It gives me epic levels of schadenfreude to note that Ricky Gervais' own Twitter upload of his absolutely genius 2020 Oscars hosting and roasting bits has 34M views. Compare this to only 10.4M watching the broadcast this year according to the reported ratings. And to think the vapid minds of Hollywood believe we care what they think on an issue. They truly live in their own special version of reality.

Andrew

Allan Black · April 30th, 2021, 06:18 PM

Mank received 10 Oscar nominations including best picture, if it had better dialogue … and the story was told in 90mins instead of 2hrs & 12 mins, it might have indeed won best picture.

But the reason I posted it here was because of the production values, the cinematography with video cameras and eg; how nominated costume designer Trish Summerville used the monochrome setting on her iPhone, to see what her colours looked like in black and white.

I hope this might inspire everyone to think outside the box when producing their own masterpiece.

Cheers.

Doug Jensen · April 30th, 2021, 09:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Andrew Smith

Hi Doug,

Actually, I was mocking the Hollywood system with that one. An over clichéd film getting so many nominations etc and yet still remaining very average.

Hi Andrew, don't worry I figured that's what you were getting at. I just wanted to reply anyway just in case anyone was to get the wrong impression about this completely boring movie.

Allan Black · May 3rd, 2021, 06:37 PM

If you haven’t heard this, this is a good place to put it, the real Orson Welles in full flight, ripping up writers in the recording studio …

Cheers.

April 26th, 2021, 03:50 PM	#1
Allan Black Inner Circle Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Sydney. Posts: 2,947	Mank 2021. Best cinematography at the 2021 Oscars. 1930’s Hollywood is reevaluated through the eyes of scathing social critic and alcoholic screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz as he races to finish the screenplay of Citizen Kane (1941). This is how cinematographer Erik Messerschmidt got the 1930s look in black and white … https://www.red.com/mank Available now on Netflix if I can steal my wife’s iPad for a look, although this is one movie you’d want to see on the big theatre screen. Cheers. __________________ Drink more tap water. On admission at Sydney hospitals more than 5% of day patients are de-hydrated.

April 28th, 2021, 04:49 PM	#2
Allan Black Inner Circle Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Sydney. Posts: 2,947	Re: Mank 2021. Mank is the pseudonym for the legendary Hollywood screen writer Herman J. Mankiewicz. I watched Netflixes ‘Mank’ on our Smart 55” Samsung, enjoying Erik Messerschmitts Oscar winning cinematography. He and his crew definitely achieved the early stark 1930s dramatic B&W film look. Mank had 10 Oscar nominations with Production Design winning best Oscar. Spoiler Alert: If you didn’t read all of the link in the above post, it’s set during the time of the Great Depression, in 1930s Hollywood. No it’s not about a famous film star, it’s about Mank and his problems while actually writing his Oscar winning script for Orson Wells Citizen Kane, so maybe it won’t appeal to todays general audiences who might see it as an art film. While some of the 2hr. dialogue is boring, the story is interesting with time proven cinema tricks. When ‘Orson Wells’ first appears his distinctive voice is carefully enunciated, so you know it is him. Same with ‘John Houseman.’ They also include the projectionist film reel change cues at the top right of the screen every 10 mins. Someone did a lot of research on writer Mankiewicz character, lead Garry Oldman nailed it being nominated for best actor and Amanda Seyfried won the Oscar as best supporting actress. Would I join Netflix just to see it, yes, and I think it’ll be interesting to members on this forum, because it was shot with video cameras. In prep, Eric Messerschmitt evaluated a number of RED cameras including a prototype of KOMODO, a RED DSMC2 WEAPON  housing a color MONSTRO sensor and both a DRAGON 6K and HELIUM 8K MONOCHROME sensor in a RED RANGER body. No I don’t know any of that gear either but recent arthouse hits like Roma were shot in color and later converted to black and white, but that route would not offer the range of control Manks filmmakers required. So maybe this’ll inspire folks here. If you can, watch it on a big ass Smart 4k TV. Maybe there’s a Netflix 30 day trial in your area. Cheers. __________________ Drink more tap water. On admission at Sydney hospitals more than 5% of day patients are de-hydrated.

April 29th, 2021, 01:11 AM	#3
Paul R Johnson Inner Circle Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Lowestoft - UK Posts: 4,046	Re: Mank 2021. The snag is that like all things art, it will appeal to some yet put off others. It leaves me totally unmoved of course, and I’ve no desire to even hunt for a trailer. I remember everyone being excited by the WW1 movie with the long continuous shot was it last year or the year before? I didn’t see that either. I’m not sure why I don’t watch movies any more, but the last movie I actually went to see, and paid for was the last Star Trek movie. I have Netflix, but have not found any movie I want to watch in the modern ones. I watch the old classic movies. I have never seen an X-Men movie or any of the Batman’s since Adam West one was on TV. They just stopped making my kind of movies. Watching a black and white movie would be fine, but I wont watch this as the story just doesn’t interest me. The technology is interesting, and I’ll happily read about it, but I’d be bored rigid in five minutes. I do appreciate people who are really into movies, but I’ve realised it passes me by when the awards are on and I don’t know any of the titles, or the actors names. I had to google Reece Witherspoon to find out the other day if this was male or female? I’ve also just discovered Rene Zellwigger is American

April 29th, 2021, 05:11 PM	#4
Doug Jensen Vortex Media Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Florida Posts: 3,450	Re: Mank 2021. Paul, you didn't miss anything. Mank was a boring, cliche' ridden, forgettable movie. I tried to watch it when it first came out and didn't get beyone the first 10 minutes. But I kept hearing about it so I gave it another chancea couple of weeks ago and watched it the whole way through. Waste of time. The cinematography was no better and no worse than any other comparable big-budget feature or modern high-end TV drama. It definitely was one of those movies that wanted to be taken for more than it really was. The B&W aspect was just a gimmick. And despite the glib dialog and music style that was clearly intended to indicate something "cool" was going on, it all fell flat on it's face. __________________ Vortex Media http://www.vortexmedia.com/ Sony FS7, F55, and XDCAM training videos, field guides, and other production tools

April 29th, 2021, 08:17 PM	#5
Andrew Smith Equal Opportunity Offender Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Brisbane, Australia Posts: 3,068	Re: Mank 2021. Guess that explains why it did so well at the Oscars. :-) Andrew

April 30th, 2021, 12:04 AM	#6
Paul R Johnson Inner Circle Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Lowestoft - UK Posts: 4,046	Re: Mank 2021. I really thought I’d totally missed something.

April 30th, 2021, 06:59 AM	#8
Andrew Smith Equal Opportunity Offender Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Brisbane, Australia Posts: 3,068	Re: Mank 2021. Hi Doug, Actually, I was mocking the Hollywood system with that one. An over clichéd film getting so many nominations etc and yet still remaining very average. It gives me epic levels of schadenfreude to note that Ricky Gervais' own Twitter upload of his absolutely genius 2020 Oscars hosting and roasting bits has 34M views. Compare this to only 10.4M watching the broadcast this year according to the reported ratings. And to think the vapid minds of Hollywood believe we care what they think on an issue. They truly live in their own special version of reality. Andrew

April 30th, 2021, 06:18 PM	#9
Allan Black Inner Circle Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Sydney. Posts: 2,947	Re: Mank 2021. Mank received 10 Oscar nominations including best picture, if it had better dialogue … and the story was told in 90mins instead of 2hrs & 12 mins, it might have indeed won best picture. But the reason I posted it here was because of the production values, the cinematography with video cameras and eg; how nominated costume designer Trish Summerville used the monochrome setting on her iPhone, to see what her colours looked like in black and white. I hope this might inspire everyone to think outside the box when producing their own masterpiece. Cheers. __________________ Drink more tap water. On admission at Sydney hospitals more than 5% of day patients are de-hydrated.

May 3rd, 2021, 06:37 PM	#11
Allan Black Inner Circle Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Sydney. Posts: 2,947	Re: Mank 2021. If you haven’t heard this, this is a good place to put it, the real Orson Welles in full flight, ripping up writers in the recording studio … Orson Welles - Findus frozen food commercial - YouTube Cheers. __________________ Drink more tap water. On admission at Sydney hospitals more than 5% of day patients are de-hydrated.