--- title: "The History of Sound: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/the-history-of-sound/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/the-history-of-sound" critics_score: 54 critics_reviews: 26 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # The History of Sound (2025): what the critics said Critics' score 54 from 26 reviews: 9 positive, 6 mixed, 11 negative. The reviews are sharply divided on The History of Sound, with negative verdicts narrowly outnumbering positive ones. Praise clusters around Paul Mescal and Josh O’Connor’s performances and the folk-song recording scenes, which several critics find more intimate and affecting than the surrounding romance. Even some sceptical reviews respond to the singing, while admirers find the patient pace and melancholy atmosphere essential to the film’s emotional pull. The central disagreement is over restraint: for supporters it makes the love story moving; for detractors it leaves the relationship cautious and unconvincing. Complaints about pacing recur even in favourable reviews, particularly around the middle and second half. The spread is wide: Deadline finds a haunting romance sustained by both leads and the music, whereas Variety finds little convincing feeling, praising O’Connor but faulting Mescal’s stillness. The Guardian also disputes one of the more common points of praise, finding the songs emotionally remote. ## IndieWire — Ryan Lattanzio Rating B. 11 September 2025. Festival review. Lattanzio finds the romance affecting and haunting, though its second half loses some emotional assurance. He praises Mescal’s understated performance and the film’s evocative music and patient atmosphere. [Read the review](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/movies/the-history-of-sound-review-paul-mescal-josh-o-connor-1235125377/) ## Empire — Laura Venning Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 23 January 2026. Venning finds the film profoundly affecting despite its muted pace and old-fashioned approach. She singles out the performances, especially Chris Cooper’s moving turn, and the songs’ power to preserve stories. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/the-history-of-sound/) ## The Hollywood Reporter — David Rooney Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 21 May 2025. Festival review. Rooney finds the film restrained and sometimes meandering, but ultimately a moving, melancholic romance. He especially praises Mescal and O’Connor’s performances and the folk music, which give the story its emotional force. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/the-history-of-sound-review-paul-mescal-josh-oconnor-1236224303/) ## Screen Daily — Lee Marshall Fi1m's normalised score 71/100 (inferred from the text). 21 May 2025. Festival review. Marshall describes the film as an intense, restrained period drama. The headline singles out the clandestine romance between its two leads. [Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/the-history-of-sound-review-josh-oconnor-and-paul-mescal-are-clandestine-lovers-in-us-set-period-drama/5205380.article) ## Radio Times — James Mottram Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 23 January 2026. The review presents the film as a tender, decade-spanning love story likely to deepen its stars’ fanbases. It praises Oliver Hermanus’s telling as exquisite. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movies/the-history-of-sound-review/) ## Little White Lies — Hannah Strong Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). Festival review. Strong finds the film a unique, moving romance, though its restraint and sagging pace may frustrate some viewers. She particularly praises Josh O’Connor’s performance and the soulful folk soundtrack. [Read the review](https://lwlies.com/festivals/the-history-of-sound-first-look-review) ## RogerEbert.com Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). The page does not expose the critic’s verdict. No praise or complaint is available to identify. [Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-history-of-sound-josh-oconnor-paul-mescal-film-review-2025) ## The New York Times Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). The URL identifies the page as a review of the specified film, but the article’s verdict is unavailable. The blocked page provides no specific praise or complaint to report. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/11/movies/the-history-of-sound-review.html) ## Slant Magazine — Marshall Shaffer Rating 2.5/4. 11 September 2025. Shaffer finds the film most affecting when it evokes music’s ability to make the present feel suspended. He praises the soulful intimacy of Lionel and David recording folk music together, while noting that the second half loses vitality without David. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/the-history-of-sound-review-paul-mescal-josh-oconnor/) ## Time Out — Phil de Semlyen Rating 3/5. 22 May 2025. The review presents the film as a slow, wistful romance rather than an unabashed triumph. It singles out the leads’ torch song to lost love as the film’s defining quality. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/the-history-of-sound-review-2025) ## Evening Standard — Jo-Ann Titmarsh Rating 2/5. 22 January 2026. The critic finds the film monotonous and its story trite, despite the appealing leads. She praises Mescal and O’Connor’s performances and says the songs bring the film to life when the score gives way to voices. [Read the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/the-history-of-sound-movie-review-b1267717.html) ## The New Yorker — Justin Chang Fi1m's normalised score 40/100 (inferred from the text). 11 September 2025. Chang finds the film beautiful but emotionally muted, with its central romance lacking sensual discovery and the filmmaking eventually slipping into inertia. He praises the folk-song recording scenes for their musical power and intimate encounters. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-current-cinema/the-muted-melancholy-synesthetics-of-the-history-of-sound) ## Sight and Sound — BFI Fi1m's normalised score 35/100 (inferred from the text). 28 May 2025. Festival review. The critic finds the film sensitive and handsomely made but excessively decorous, lacking emotional intensity. Hadley Robinson’s nuanced, controlled performance is singled out as the film’s most striking element. [Read the review](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/history-sound-desire-more-studied-than-felt-this-timid-romantic-drama) ## Los Angeles Times — Robert Abele Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 12 September 2025. Abele finds the romance overly cautious and emotionally muted, despite an eventually moving final act. He praises Paul Mescal’s affecting portrayal of sorrow-wracked loneliness. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2025-09-12/the-history-of-sound-review-josh-o-connor-paul-mescal-chris-cooper-oliver-hermanus) ## The AV Club — Jason Gorber Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 23 May 2025. Gorber finds the film disappointing, calling its queer romance repetitive and its music emotionally inert. He praises the premise of collecting songs in isolated backwoods settings, but says the story handles it too obviously and by rote. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/the-history-of-sound-review) ## Vulture — Alison Willmore Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 12 September 2025. Willmore finds the film too restrained to make its romance emotionally compelling. She praises the opening scenes and the unexpected closing sequence as the moments the film fully inhabits. [Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/article/a-history-of-sound-paul-mescal-josh-oconnor-movie-review.html) ## The Guardian — Peter Bradshaw Fi1m's normalised score 25/100 (inferred from the text). 21 May 2025. Festival review. Bradshaw finds the film tasteful and laborious, unable to bring its love story to life. He faults the folk songs and romance for feeling preserved under glass rather than emotionally immediate. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2025/may/21/the-history-of-sound-review-paul-mescal-josh-oconnor-cannes) ## Variety — Owen Gleiberman Fi1m's normalised score 10/100 (inferred from the text). 21 May 2025. Festival review. Gleiberman finds the romance listless and spiritually inexpressive, and says it fails to make its tragedy emotionally convincing. He praises Josh O’Connor’s vivid performance, while criticizing Paul Mescal’s stillness and the film’s overly pictorial style. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2025/film/reviews/the-history-of-sound-review-paul-mescal-josh-oconnor-1236405552/) ## Deadline — Pete Hammond Fi1m's normalised score 95/100 (inferred from the text). 21 May 2025. Festival review. Hammond calls it a quietly masterful, haunting love story that stays with the viewer. He especially praises the performances by Paul Mescal and Josh O’Connor and the film’s beautifully arranged folk music. [Read the review](https://deadline.com/2025/05/the-history-of-sound-review-paul-mescal-josh-oconnor-1236407195/) ## NME Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). Festival review. The critic calls the film essential viewing and finds its story of thwarted love deeply moving. They single out the performances, exquisite roots music, and evocative cinematography for praise. [Read the review](https://www.nme.com/reviews/film-reviews/the-history-of-sound-review-paul-mescal-josh-o-connor-3863773) ## Collider — Therese Lacson Rating 8/10. 21 May 2025. Festival review. Lacson finds the film moving and heartbreaking, though its middle section loses momentum. She especially praises the folk songs and ballads as the story’s emotional anchor. [Read the review](https://collider.com/the-history-of-sound-review-paul-mescal-josh-oconnor/) ## The Playlist Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 21 May 2025. Festival review. The headline suggests the film is affecting, though the review text was inaccessible. It singles out Paul Mescal and Josh O’Connor’s performances as heartbreaking. [Read the review](https://theplaylist.net/the-history-of-sound-review-paul-mescal-and-josh-oconnor-are-heartbreaking-enough-cannes-20250521/) ## The Skinny — Josh Slater-Williams Rating ★★★. 19 January 2026. The review finds the film too muted in its direction and pacing, though its verdict improves with an effective epilogue. It singles out Chris Cooper’s appearance for adding passion and crucial context to the story. [Read the review](https://www.theskinny.co.uk/film/new-releases/the-history-of-sound) ## HeyUGuys Fi1m's normalised score 35/100 (inferred from the text). Festival review. The critic finds the film exquisitely crafted but emotionally muted, leaving it more admired than loved. They praise its lush cinematography and sound, while faulting its restraint for keeping the central romance from igniting. [Read the review](https://www.heyuguys.com/the-history-of-sound-review-lff-2025/) ## The Wrap Fi1m's normalised score 35/100 (inferred from the text). 21 May 2025. The critic finds the romance muted and unsatisfying. They fault the film’s uniform visual style for failing to convey the protagonist’s sensory experience. [Read the review](https://www.thewrap.com/history-of-sound-review-paul-mescal-josh-oconnor/) ## Eye for Film — Marko Stojiljkovic Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 26 November 2025. The critic finds the film safe and mediocre, with its passion concentrated in the first half. The folk music is lively, but the romance never properly works. [Read the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/the-history-of-sound-2025-film-review-by-marko-stojiljkovic) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/the-history-of-sound.md