‘The History Of Sound’ review: Paul Mescal gets back to breaking hearts

Having broken through as taciturn heartthrob Connell in hit series Normal People, Paul Mescal’s career has caught fire. Proving he has genuine range, the Irish actor excelled as a depressed dad in Aftersun and recently led swords-and-sandals blockbuster Gladiator 2 with a charismatic swagger. The History Of Sound sees him return to romance, in a beautiful period drama that’s as gorgeous as it is heartbreaking.

Making its world premiere at Cannes Film Festival, The History of Sound is about Lionel (Mescal), a gifted boy from rural Kentucky with perfect pitch and synaesthesia – meaning he sees music as colours. Set in 1917, our musical maestro is away studying in Boston where he hears David (Josh O’Connor) at a barroom piano, playing the same song he shared with his father as a child. The pair quickly bond over their passion for music, becoming fast friends then lovers.

It’s far from being happily ever after though. David is drafted to fight in World War One and Lionel reluctantly returns to Kentucky. While there, his beloved father dies. After the war, he reconnects with David who invites him on a trip around New England to document folk songs from small, remote communities using an early recording device that involves wax cylinders. The pair visit remarkable singers who weave songs of deep meaning, homespun poetry and powerful stories. Their secret love and countryside surroundings recall Brokeback Mountain in both setting and emotional impact.

At the conclusion of the trip, the pair once again go their separate ways. After a stint in Rome, Lionel ends up conducting a choir in Oxford and falling for a well-to-do young woman. After his many letters to David go unanswered, he eventually returns home to America where several painful surprises are waiting for him.

Director Oliver Hermanus’ last film Living was a superb, deeply heartfelt remake of Akira Kurosawa’s classic Ikiru. The rich, compassionate The History Of Sound, adapted for the screen by Ben Shattuck from his own short story, is similarly mesmerising.

Mescal and O’Connor deliver the acting goods and the tale is told briskly, while exquisite American roots music is threaded deftly throughout the soundtrack, adding a real depth to the lush, romantic environment. The History Of Sound also looks the part, with cinematographer Alexander Dynan’s close-ups of despairing faces and freezing countryside accentuating the longing and regret that hangs over the film. A deeply sad movie about thwarted love, The History of Sound is essential viewing.