I've got to wonder that if Tenet killed cinema, what is Mank doing to its successor? This spaghetti monster eluded even Fincher's usually reliable ability to entertain. Gary Oldman is fine as far as it goes, as is Amanda Seyfried. Against these Lily Collins (sprog of Phil) is uninventively starchy, and the remainder of the cast is too vast to be concerned with. Too many scenes go predictably; perhaps the audience is supposed to use this as an opportunity to trainspot.
I had hoped for more from the story; Dana Stevens makes it sound like no more than another entry in the who-wrote-Citizen Kane genre. A. O. Scott must have a quota of critic's picks to hand out. Glenn Kenny spilt a lot of words at Ebert's venue. Later, J. Hoberman. All missed the obvious referent, Tarantino's Once Upon a Time in Hollywood from just last year, which I found similarly tedious. Perhaps the end of Trump's days will uncork a renaissance in Hollywood, a re-engagement with the wider world. But probably not. Much later, Michael Wood.