Mank is certainly a movie with a lot of Golden Globe nominations—deservedly so! It’s a good movie, and it’s a pretty great movie about movies. I liked it, and you can see my tuxedo-wearing self talking about what I liked about David Fincher’s ode to old Hollywood in the video that’s autoplaying above right now.
But I hope you’re not here to read a serious take about Mank, because I’m definitely not here to write a serious take about Mank. I’m here to use the film’s Golden Globe nominations (and likely Golden Globe wins) as an excuse to write about the one part of this movie that blew my mind and had me straight up screaming with shock and awe at my coworkers in Slack for days.
I’m not talking about the lush cinematography, the captivating performances, the handsome vintage suits, or all the Marion Davies eleganza. As breathtaking as all that was, nothing took my breath away like this moment two hours into the movie:
Photo: Netflix
I chuckled when 62-year-old Gary Oldman said this line out loud while playing Citizen Kane screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz—and then I realized Oldman played it with a straight face. He couldn’t possibly be telling the truth, right? There’s no way Gary Oldman, literally an old man, was playing a 43-year-old in this movie—not to mention all the numerous scenes where he’s playing a 33-year-old Mank! The truth?
YEAH, GARY OLDMAN PLAYED A 43-YEAR-OLD—AND SOMETIMES A 33-YEAR-OLD!—IN NETFLIX’S MANK. No de-aging CG, no makeup, no attempt to mask it other than what was accomplished by the limited glow of that old school cinematography. For comparison, here’s Gary Oldman with two 43-year-old actors, Colin Hanks and James Van Der Beek.
Photos: Getty Images
Just three men who were all definitely born the year that Star Wars was released! Honestly Fincher should’ve just cast Steve Buscemi as Mank if he was intentionally trying to recreate that “How do you do, fellow kids?” vibe. But 62-year-old Gary Oldman showed up to set, put on a cardigan and PJs, and got to work playing a man 19 years his junior—and the movie doesn’t even address this until a full 119 minutes in. The nerve, the confidence—!
But then I wondered… wait, if Gary Oldman is playing a 43-year-old, then how old is Amanda Seyfried supposed to be as Marion Davies? Again, these are all real people whose real ages we can just look up—so I did.
And people.
Let me tell you.
35-year-old Amanda Seyfried is ALSO PLAYING A 43-YEAR-OLD! Marion Davies and Herman Mankiewicz were both born in 1897—and TBH, Davies was 308 days older than Mank! Amanda Seyfried is supposed to be 10 months older than Gary Oldman in this here masterwork of modern cinema!
Photo: Netflix
Just two 43-year-olds casually hanging out—oh, except this particular still is a flashback so Oldman is actually playing 33. But just like with Oldman, the film does nary a thing to age Seyfried up as the 1930s progress. So that picture of two 33-year-olds hanging out might as well be two 43-year-olds hanging out, even if there’s a 27-year age difference between these two Golden Globe-nominated actors!
This is madness and, y’know what? I’m here for it. As much as I enjoyed Mank’s tour through Hollywood history, few things brought me joy late last year like the mind-blowing moment I found out that these two were supposed to be the same age. If there’s a Golden Globe for Best Bit of Bizarre Trivia That Will Stay With You Forever, then Mank deserves it for casting Karen from Mean Girls as a peer of Commissioner Gordon.
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Originally published at https://decider.com/2021/02/23/mank-golden-globes-gary-oldman-amanda-seyfried-same-age/ on .
