It has often been said that music is the only truly universal language, and director Mika Kaurismaki continues the exploration of global sounds he started in Moro No Brasil and Brasileirinho with this documentary about rhythm and drumming. The subject of the film is world-renowned drummer and composer Billy Cobham, an artist who embodies a universal ethic. Born in Panama of Nigerian descent, Cobham was raised in New York and resides in Switzerland, and today fuses music from around the world in his work. The film journeys from a jazz festival in Finland, to a Brazilian community samba group, to a clinic for the autistic in Switzerland where Cobham introduces music as a tool for communication. Sonic Mirror holds up music as a force for identity and connection between artist and audience, and positions it as a common language while simultaneously highlighting cultural differences. (Young-in LEE)