Malcolm & Marie review – Zendaya saves clunky lockdown drama
Unusual times call for unusual methods. With filming on their TV series Euphoria halted due to the COVID-19 lockdown, creator Sam Levinson and Emmy winning star Zendaya got together and filmed this relationship drama entirely contained within one building, with cast and crew isolating in order to work together safely.
Told over the course of an evening, John David Washington plays Malcolm, a film director arriving home after the premiere of his new film with his partner Marie (Zendaya). As he impatiently awaits the critical reaction, Marie’s hurt at not being mentioned in his speech at the event blows up into a tense argument where the past is dug up, and the future of their relationship examined.
From the very first frame it’s a beautiful film. Shot on black and white 35mm film stock, cinematographer Marcell Rév makes everything look like a coffee table book come to life. Another collaborator from Euphoria, rapper Labrinth, gives an equally rich feel to the film’s soundtrack.
At the story plays out, the debate rages as to who’s at fault for where they are in their relationship: is it Malcolm? Marie? Hollywood? In truth, the most toxic element is Levinson’s script. The son of Diner director Barry falls into the trap of many second-generation filmmakers, assuming the world they were born into is by any means relatable. Just as Sofia Coppola’s recent comedy On The Rocks asked us to empathise with affluent Manhattanites, there is something disconnected about a celebrated filmmaker complaining in an LA mansion.
Moving from forced melodrama to petulant rant, it’s less a script, more a series of angry blog posts that will only resonate with people in his privileged position. Speeches about box office, artistic inspiration, and a passionate dissection of film critics feel insular. Reviewers and the industry in general are often worthy targets of scorn, but the vitriol says far more about the self-indulgence of the person writing it. At one point, after a lengthy diatribe against an LA Times review, Malcolm collapses and confesses he’s “tired of fighting”. “Well,” Marie quips, “that was a fight you had entirely with yourself”. I couldn’t agree more.
Can good actors overcome a poor script? They can when they’re Zendaya and John David Washington. Two of the most exciting stars to emerge in the last few years show why their careers have had such momentum, putting emotions behind clunky dialogue to make it more than a 100-minute argument.
Both simmer with anger and fragility, Washington charging from room to room shouting the odds while Zendaya sits calmly, a quiet storm of feelings behind her eyes. The intensity of the exchanges tells the real story, in moments such as a bathroom confrontation where Malcolm tells stories from previous relationships while Marie listens, both enraged and wounded. Between them, they find the truth beneath the script’s posturing, and the film is all the better for it.
While surmising his new film’s box office potential, Malcolm declares “political films are exhausting”. Levinson’s two hander may be just as trying for audiences, particularly those with the ability to pause the drama on their streaming service. However, sharp visuals and two exceptional on-screen talents make this flawed story worth watching.
Malcolm & Marie is available on Netflix from 5th February