The History of Sound is a 2025 historicalromantic drama film directed by Oliver Hermanus, written by Ben Shattuck, and based on a pair of his short stories, the first and last in his collection The History of Sound: "The History of Sound" and "Origin Stories". It follows the relationship between Lionel (Paul Mescal) and David (Josh O'Connor), who meet in 1917 while attending the New England Conservatory, and after World War I travel together recording folk songs of their countrymen in rural Maine in the winter of 1920.[3]
The film had its world premiere at the main competition of the 78th Cannes Film Festival on May 21, 2025, where it was nominated for the Palme d'Or.[4] It was released in the United States by Mubi on September 12, 2025.
Plot
In 1917, New England Conservatory music student Lionel Worthing meets fellow student David White at a pub, where they instantly bond over their love of folk music before returning to David’s apartment to have sex. As the two become closer, America gets involved in World War I, leading David to enlist and Lionel to return to his home state of Kentucky as the conservatory closes. He sets music aside to assist on his family’s farm after his father dies suddenly.
In 1919, Lionel receives a letter from David notifying him of his return from the war, his employment in a Maine college and a department-funded trip across the state to collect folk songs on wax cylinders before inviting Lionel to accompany and assist him. The two reunite and travel around, capturing various folk songs from various walks of life and renewing their relationship. Eventually, they part ways again as David must return to work and Lionel plans to travel to Europe. Lionel stays with touch with David via letters, only to stop writing as he never receives a response.
In 1923, Lionel, now living in Italy, tells his lover Luca that he’s taken a job as a conductor at the University of Oxford, ending the relationship on bad terms. A year later, Lionel is serving as conductor for the school's choir and involved with student socialite Clarissa Roux, who invites him to meet her family at their country manor. During the trip, Lionel becomes overwhelmed with memories of David and their time collecting music. The relationship with Clarissa eventually ends when Lionel must suddenly return to the United States to comfort his dying mother.
After some time in Kentucky putting his family’s affairs in order, Lionel travels to Maine to find David, only to learn from a colleague that David had died some time after their trip and that his department never commissioned their trip, leaving the location of the wax cylinders unknown, before recommending Lionel get in touch with David’s widow Belle. After meeting her family, Belle reveals she knows who Lionel is, how she and David became involved, David’s death was a suicide, returns his letters and tells him she will him send the cylinders if they can be found. Lionel mourns David by visiting his favorite locations from youth and playing the songs that endeared him to music.
In 1980, Lionel, now an ethnomusicologist, is promoting his newest book when a package containing the wax cylinders arrives on his doorstep, including one made on the day of David’s death. On the recording, he tells Lionel he has felt completely lost since fighting in the war and sings "Silver Dagger," the song that led him to fall in love with Lionel when they first met.[5]
The History of Sound originated with the production company End Cue, which found the short story of the same name in The Common, a literary journal based at Amherst College, and brought the project on board with author Ben Shattuck adapting his own work for the screen. Andrew Kortschak and Lisa Ciuffetti of End Cue structured the writer’s deal and provided development financing to Shattuck. End Cue hired on Hermanus after the treatment stage of development. Kortschak, Ciuffetti and Hermanus guided Shattuck during the writing process just as the COVID-19 pandemic started, so much of the development occurred remotely between Los Angeles, Massachusetts and South Africa, with Hermanus participating during lockdown from his home in Barrydale, South Africa.[6]
At the end of October 2021, the film was announced along with its leads Paul Mescal and Josh O'Connor.[7] Producers include Ciuffetti, Kortschak, and Andrea Roa, as well as Tim Haslam for Embankment Films[8] and Sara Murphy. Principal photography was originally going to take place on location in the United Kingdom, United States, and Italy in summer 2022,[7] but was postponed because Mescal and O'Connor had scheduling conflicts.[9] Production was rescheduled for after Hermanus completed Mary & George,[10] starting in Massachusetts.[11]
Production began on February 28, 2024.[12] O'Connor learned to play the piano for his part; his scenes were filmed first, before he left to promote his film Challengers in April.[13]
Crew allegedly attached to The History of Sound were spotted at the restaurant 10th & Willow in Hoboken, New Jersey, which was closed for filming in early March,[14] and O'Connor and Mescal were photographed together in costume for the first time.[15] Another New Jersey location The History of Sound was filmed at is the Oakley Farm Museum in Freehold Township. The blacksmith shop, located at the rear of the property, was turned into a Maine cabin and visited by stars Mescal and O'Connor. The location was one of two in the entire state that End Cue and Film4 were seeking.[16] In April 2024, production moved to Tarquinia, Italy.[17]
Release
In June 2024, it was reported the film would not be ready in time for the autumn festivals due to its score and sound production, and would instead aim for a 2025 Cannes Film Festival debut.[8] In February 2025, Mubi and Focus Features/Universal Pictures International acquired North American and international distribution rights respectively.[18] In April 2025, it was announced that the film would have its world premiere in competition at the Cannes Film Festival on 21 May 2025.[19][20] The film was released in the United States on September 12, 2025.[21] The film premiered in Canada on September 18, 2025 at Innis College. [22]
Reception
Critical reception
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 68% of 76 critics' reviews are positive.The website's consensus reads: "Its drawn-out pacing and overly familiar trajectory undermine its potential to truly surprise, but The History of Sound nonetheless offers a visually stunning and well-acted journey through its melancholic exploration of human connection."[23]Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 63 out of 100, based on 28 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[24]
Davide Abbatescianni of Cineuropa described it as "a heartfelt, occasionally flawed, but ultimately moving film that navigates themes of intimacy, remembrance and cultural preservation through a uniquely melodic lens."[25] Pavel Snapkou from Showbiz by PS wrote that the film may not appeal to everyone, but that "if you stay with it and let it unfold, the emotional undertow eventually hits hard."[5]
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