10 Films To Get You In The Mood For David Fincher's Mank
3. The Lost Weekend
Billy Wilder's classic adaption of Charles Jackson's novel of alcohol dependence is a focused, harrowing drama that retains all its power even decades later.
Not only does the subject matter chime with Mank, but there's nothing like classic Hollywood cinema to get you in the mood for a film about Hollywood's golden age.
The Lost Weekend tells the tale of alcoholic writer Don Birnam's last long weekend binge. With no money and desperate for drink, the film is not a pleasant experience, and it is a testament to the quality of the filmmaking that the film has lost none of its power to shock, horrify, and ultimately move 75 years after its release.
Particularly unforgettable is the horrifying 'delirium tremens' sequence. The film is also noteworthy as the first use of the theremin in a film score, long before it became ubiquitous in science fiction.
Considering that the eponymous Mank was an infamous alcoholic, amongst other things, The Lost Weekend's particularly unvarnished and period appropriate portrayal of the illness will make for a poignant counterpart to Fincher's latest.