Malcolm & Marie

The pandemic, understandably, put a lot of movie and TV projects on hold. Until sets could guarantee safety for everyone involved, trying to make a multi-million dollar project seemed risky at best and reckless at worst. So small intimate films like Malcom & Marie, notably filmed with a baseline cast and crew make perfect sense. But is the film actually good?

The Setup

The film follows the titular couple after the premiere of Malcolm's movie. Despite a seemingly successful night, there's a palpable tension between them. And as the night and emotions fly, the question isn't whether or not this couple is troubled, but if they survive the night...

Conceptually, I like this movie. I like all of the talent involved including John David Washington, Zendaya, and writer/director Sam Levinson. The black and white cinematography looks great, thanks in large part to clever costuming and set design, and there's some interesting avenues to work with regarding the creative process, relationships, and beyond. That said this movie doesn't work for me. And there's one big reason.

This film feels like a play. And not in a good way.

Which is weird because this movie isn't based on anything. It's an original screenplay from Sam Levinson. So why does it feel like a play? Dialogue and structure.

On the dialogue end, a lot of the monologues and language choices feel unnatural. The best way I can describe it is that the back and forths feel rehearsed. The arguments are too well thought out with too much evidence and deep references and the actors rarely stumble for their next line or thought. It's too clean. And because we only have two people with some musical interludes in between, it becomes very obvious that we're watching a movie.

It also doesn't help that almost the entire film is an extended argument. This is the structural problem. I get why this is the framework, you want conflict throughout the film, but it also feels like fights are being started and restarted because the movie needs them too. Malcolm reads an article as had to get furious about it. Marie rehashes a grievance from earlier because we need a scene or her auditioning for the part she wanted. Ideally each idea would blend together or we'd have peaks and valleys where these two are connecting and fighting, but it's almost all fighting and that's punishing for an entire movie's run time. 

Again, this can be done, but you need a strong narrative thrust or bigger questions at play. The film adaptation of Night, Mother comes to mind. That film has a very similar setup. Two leads, the film is essentially an extended argument, and it is adapted from a play. But that film also has the source material's thematic and narrative thrust, one of the two characters plans on committing suicide by the night's end. The only thing at stake in Malcom & Marie is this couple's future. And since we don't have a baseline for them besides arguments, it's hard to be invested.

Verdict: Well-Produced With A Shaky Script

While the acting and directing are all top-notch, Malcolm & Marie is let down by the script. 5/10