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If you’ve never seen the famous Orson Welles film CITIZEN KANE, you may want to change that before diving into MANK. The new David Fincher (GONE GIRL) movie features the great Gary Oldman as infamous Hollywood screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz, who asked folks to refer to him as “Mank”, even on set. This was actually written by David’s father Jack Fincher, but word has it this film has been in the works since 1997, and it’s also worthy of note that this is the first movie David Fincher has directed since GONE GIRL in 2014. While what we’re seeing here is meant to be a pulling back of the curtain toward the making of CITIZEN KANE, it almost looks like a loving homage to the film itself, practically moving into remake territory… and perhaps that’s intentional. In the film, William Randolph Hearst is played by Charles Dance, Tom Burke portrays Orson Welles, and the cast also includes Amanda Seyfried as Marion Davies, Lily Collins as Rita Alexander, Arliss Howard as Louis B. Mayer, Tom Pelphrey as Joseph L. Mankiewicz, Tuppence Middleton as Sara Mankiewicz, Joseph Cross as Charles Lederer, Craig Robert Young as Charlie Chaplin, Sebastian Faure as Clark Gable, Michelle Twarowska as Joan Crawford, Scarlet Cummings as Bette Davis, Natalie Denise Sperl as Greta Garbo, Trevor Wooldridge as Darryl F. Zanuck, Ferdinand Kingsley as Irving Thalberg, and Toby Leonard Moore as David O. Selznick. As someone who is fascinated with Hollywood history, this is definitely of interest to me, but I wonder how much the average moviegoer will take interest in a film that is intentionally made to looks like 1930s cinema. Check out the trailer and tell us your thoughts in the comments.
1930s Hollywood is re-evaluated through the eyes of scathing social critic and alcoholic screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz as he races to finish the screenplay of Citizen Kane for Orson Welles.
Born and raised in Dallas, Mark has been a movie critic since 1994, with reviews featured in print, radio and National TV. In 2001 he started the Entertainment section of the Herorealm website, where he contributed film reviews and celebrity interviews until 2004. After three years of service there, he started Bigfanboy.com, which has become one of the Dallas film community's leading information websites. Bigfanboy hosts several movie screenings in the Texas area, and works closely with film and TV studios and promotional partners to host exciting events and contests. The site also features a variety of rare celebrity and filmmaker interviews, and Bigfanboy.com regularly covers the film festival circuit as well. In addition to Hollywood reporting, Mark has worked for many years as an advertising and sci-fi/comic book artist. Clients have included Lucasfilm Ltd., Topps Trading Cards, The Dallas Mavericks and The Dallas Stars. From 2002 until 2015 he managed the Dallas Comic Con, Sci-Fi Expo and Fan Days events in the DFW area. He currently catalogs rare comic books and movie memorabilia for Heritage Auctions, and runs the Dallas Comic Show conventions, but remains an avid moviegoer and cinema buff. 
