The History of Sound: First reviews are in of Paul Mescal and Josh O’Connor’s ‘tender’ gay romance film
One critic has labelled the flick, which won a six-minute standing ovation at Cannes, "the Brokeback of today"
The first reviews are in for Paul Mescal and Josh O’Connor‘s new movie The History of Sound, with one critic calling it “the Brokeback of today.”
Directed by Oliver Hermanus, the film premiered in the main competition at the 78th Cannes Film Festival last night (21 May 2025), where it was nominated for the Palme d’Or.
The hotly anticipated film won a six-month standing ovation at last night’s screening.
The History of Sound focuses on Lionel (Mescal) and David (O’Connor), who, ‘during the WW1 period, set out to record the lives, voices, and music of their countrymen’, as per the film’s official synopsis.
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film currently boasts a 75% Certified Fresh rating from 16 mostly positive reviews. Here’s a breakdown of the reception, looking at reactions from five outlets…
Hollywood Reporter
“Paul Mescal and Josh O’Connor offer more proof that they are among the best contemporary actors we have in The History of Sound, a resonant account of a tender but too-fleeting gay love affair interrupted by World War I. Adapted by Ben Shattuck from his jewel-like short story of the same name, the film’s romance and heartache are intensified by the intimate experience the two men share of traveling the backwoods of Maine in 1919, collecting traditional folk tunes and ballads from rural people, essentially the equivalent in music of an oral history” – Owen Gleiberman
IndieWire
“The History of Sound is as plaintive and lilting as a piano note in minor key, never wallowing in its own misery but still keen to explore the psychic sensations, afterglow, and wreckage of a meaningful connection. If the film lacks heat, that’s because Hermanus is committed to making what is decidedly not a Big Gay Sweeping Romance. The emotions flood and hit hard, though, in a final chapter in which Lionel encounters David’s eventual wife Belle (Hadley Robinson, who gives a stirring monologue), who is restless and desperate for company and hopes Lionel will stay for just a little bit longer” – Ryan Lattanzio
Vanity Fair
“As it glides toward its bittersweet conclusion, and Chris Cooper enters the picture as an elderly Lionel, the movie’s air of impossible ache becomes potent. It successfully connects romance and music, arguing that Lionel and David’s love was its own kind of eternal folk song— that the small clamour and motion of all of our lives is part of some grander human symphony” – Richard Lawson
ScreenRant
“The History of Sound may have been one of the most hotly anticipated Cannes premieres and I’m sure many hoped it would be one of the hottest movies, what with two of the internet’s preeminent boyfriends starring as lovers. It’s not as steamy as one would hope — and those familiar with the work of director Oliver Hermanus probably saw that coming. Instead, it’s a poignant meditation on the power of music, as corny as that might sound” – Graeme Guttmann
Collider
“There’s loving music and enjoying music, and then there’s being able to taste sound and see colours in sound. That is how Paul Mescal’s Lionel experiences music. It’s more than just music to him, and when he meets Josh O’Connor’s David at the Boston Music Conservatory in 1917 after he hears David singing a ballad that he used to sing back on his farm in Kentucky, the two automatically form a bond through music that lasts their lifetime. Oliver Hermanus’ The History of Sound tells the story of Lionel and David by understanding the power of sound and music and how it shapes our emotions. Spanning over several years, Hermanus reveals a deep romance between two men who find love with each other as well as the folk songs and ballads of rural Maine” – Therese Lacson