Malcolm & Marie — Film Review
After watching, and recently re-watching, Zendaya’s Emmy-winning performance in the hit HBO teen drama “Euphoria,” I couldn’t wait to see her latest Netflix project “Malcolm & Marie.” Written by writer/director Sam Levinson, who also created “Euphoria,” the film revolves around a dysfunctional relationship between a recovering drug addict turned actress (played by Zendaya) and a promising filmmaker (played by John David Washington, previously known for his role in Christopher Nolan’s 2020 film, Tenet.) Shot in 35mm black & white, the film makes good use of linear camera movements, providing a consistent, forward-moving pace and subtly hinting towards the imminent tension.
The story begins as we see Malcolm and Marie return home after watching Malcolm’s film premiere, which receives grand praises from his peers and audiences. Ten minutes into the film, Levinson manages to reel the audiences into the tension stirring between the couple as we see Marie getting slightly irked at Malcolm about the screening while he drinks, sings, and celebrates the success of his movie. What ensues is a seemingly never-ending exchange that lasts the entirety of the film, with both characters ruthlessly engaging in a verbally bashful and tragic conversation. While the film manages to make certain valid criticism about the profession of film criticism, I found certain parts of the movie seemingly enforced upon the audiences — like the one where Malcolm starts complaining about Black filmmakers who are known for blending racial and political context into their films. Or the scene where Malcolm starts trash-talking an LA Times film critic who, he feels, stereotyped his film. This particular scene feels like Levinson is trying to get back to critics who badly rated his 2018 film ‘Assassination Nation.’ But, for me, that’s not where Malcolm and Marie fail to deliver on its promise.
The dialogues in the movie are long-winded, text-heavy monologues that are occasionally interspersed with Jazz/R&B music from the 70s, which Levinson uses as pauses to prevent the audiences from experiencing fatigue. But he does so failingly as we see the characters go on seemingly digressive rants that at times feel unnecessary. It felt as if the characters were saying what Levinson as a filmmaker wanted to convey about the art of filmmaking than what Malcolm and Marie would want to say. Regardless, I enjoyed the selection of songs as it provided the much-need space for the characters and audiences to immerse themselves into the experience that Levinson offers.
Besides having such an incredible cast and a significant run-time, the film fell short in its impact. Personally, the film would’ve made more sense as a short. To quote Malcolm, “Cinema doesn’t need to have a message. It needs to have a heart and electricity.” Ironically, Malcolm and Marie did have a powerful message but what it lacked was the “heart” and “electricity” to deliver it. That being said, what Levinson and Zendaya did with Euphoria, and with this movie, is an excellent example of a powerful collaboration between a writer and an actor, and I’m looking forward to many such projects in the future.
