Through an uneven dynamic, emotional performances, and a shrill of fatigued arguments, Malcolm & Marie embody a deep, yet destructive, love affair between a filmmaker and his 20-year-old girlfriend.
This crippling love story is different from any typical rom-com movie.
Starring John David Washington and Zendaya, the nearly two-hour movie takes place at night when the two come home after Malcolm’s film debut. Despite Malcolm believing that they both had a fantastic night, his inability to mention Marie in his thank-you speech was the spark to a never-ending line of fire.
At this stage, they excellently display brutally honest moments that couples during a pandemic would share: in love one moment and tearing each other apart the next.
As a result, the writers were able to use this concept of a romantic, intoxicated relationship to lure in the audience and discuss stereotypical ideologies in film from Malcolm’s point of view as a Black aspiring filmmaker.
Along with the tension between the two, the lack of music, and the black and white cinematography, the movie fragments itself on several occasions, each a separate argument—flawlessly depicting a struggle and a broken piece in their relationship.
“Nothing productive is going to be said tonight,” Marie says quietly when Malcolm starts to ask what’s bothering her after they get home. She’s right. Even so that her words, as a result, turn out to be the truest words spoken for the entire night.
Standing as an audience, we observe Malcolm and Marie in a close-and-personal point of view. We stand between the loud silences, the prolonged stares across the room, and the fumes of cigarettes that “blow off the steam” after every argument.
At points, the actors themselves chose to express their heightened emotions through music on their phones, letting it speak for them rather than using their own words.
However, as the music comes to a stop and the arguments begin, the scene revolves around their words and shots towards one another.
Through their long dramatic monologues, they exasperate the viewer as they take their every last breath to belittle each other—each lasting for over 10 minutes. They break each other apart, piece by piece, through their past lives and personal memories that couples often find themselves sharing too much information about.
After their spewing words of hatred, they makeup, almost out of sheer exhaustion, and share a sensual moment before either one chooses to argue some more—all occurring at a moment’s notice.
Marie and Malcolm are mentally and emotionally living in separate worlds. It’s obvious as in several points in the movie, one character is in the house, and the other looks through the outside of a window—each stepping out of the house at different moments to show how they’re always on two different pages.
They attempt to fit in each other’s lives, however, what they don’t realize is that they’re two puzzle pieces that just don’t fit together, despite their tremendous love for each other.
Unlike any other film, Malcolm & Marie represents the fine line between love and hate in a cinematic environment—adding depth and realism in a relationship rarely shown on screen.
