FILM REVIEW: The Drama

Show, Don’t Tell

One of my favorite film genres (that I absolutely did not make up): “Matinee Murder Mystery”. A precise Saturday 2pm start time, an immediate murder hook in the first scene, and fresh daytime post-solving-“whodunnit” walking out of the theater. The marketing for these movies is usually: “There has been a murder, come see what happens.” I am seated every time. The Drama, a new film directed by Kristoffer Borgli (Dream Scenario) starring Zendaya and Robert Pattinson, has been using this same technique across its trailers. Two couples discuss the worst thing each of them has done in their lives. We get to Zendaya’s character, and her confession is omitted. Instead, we are treated to a couple of “wtf” faces from the other friends.

The trailers make us ask, “What happened?” Hook, line, and sinker. I became the target audience. Luckily, the trick works in refreshing ways. The dinner, instead of being the Climax, is the Inciting Incident. The end result is a wedding day straight from the world of Uncut Gems. An incisive, satirical, wild ride across friendships, romance, and controversy. Led by Zendaya and Robert Pattinson, the film shows us the intricacies of a relationship thrown straight into a blender that makes sounds that are equally funny and terrifying.

The film opens in a coffee shop. It fits the typical rom-com vibe, where Charlie (Pattinson) is trying to get Emma’s (Zendaya) attention. We follow along as the happy couple falls in love and is getting ready for their Big Day. Then the trailer dinner scene approaches. The happy couple is food tasting with their friends Rachel and Mike (deliciously sharp performances by Alana Haim and Mamoudou Athie). The aforementioned question is asked, and we are off to the races. Unless you have the plot spoiled, it really is difficult to guess what exactly the Big Bad Thing young Emma did in her past. That is part of the film’s, er, charm.

As a good Facebook album post from your high school bully’s wedding suggests, the beauty is “in the details”. The story paints a little too broadly when it is clearly trying to be specific and incisive. I found the commentary on wedding culture to be more acute in its execution. Background characters like the Photographer (Zoë Winters), the DJs (Jeremy Levick and Sydney Lemmon), and even the Dance Instructor (Celia Rowlson-Hall) are given scene-stealing moments that add great levels to the film’s dark humor.

The humor also comes through via this film’s visual storytelling. What could easily be a “film that should be a play”, Cinematographer Arseni Khachaturan (Bones and All) carries the weight of the story through nice flashbacks to young Emma. It separates the controversy from being just a plot beat and fleshes it out into something even more. When the reveal happens, the tension is heightened because of the quick cuts in the editing. Editors Joshua Raymond Lee and Borgli have crafted an atmosphere that enhances the visual elements instead of dialogue. I found this to be very effective, similar to how I felt watching Luca Guadagnino’s Challengers a few years back.

Pattinson is giving the performance of the night. His ability to maintain his charisma amongst the absurdity around him is strong and carries a good third of the film. This third of the film is located in a spot where movies normally crumble. His reactions after being confronted with something so personally Earth-shattering are true highlights. Honestly, all of the characters become versions of themselves that are so much worse than what they project onto Emma. Rachel literally did something. It was actionable and, frankly, I still do not believe her. The film opens conversations like these up so nicely for us to immediately dig into and think about long after the credits have rolled.

You can tell that a non-American told this story, for better or worse. The matter at the film’s center is so visceral to many of us who live here. It should be discussed more, however, in this film, it is more of a branch to the final landing instead of the main road. That is okay, considering this was the team’s intent, it seems, and they do a great job overall at getting to this spot. There is a conception in online film discourse of what films should be beyond what they are. Most are valid criticisms, while others totally miss the fact that there is an actual film in front of them. There is a version of this film that discusses with a more infused perspective what our world should be for our children. The ending of the film, though, reminds us that that is just not what the story is about. That is okay when it is a film as well-made as this one.