Marriage Story review | Photo Credit: Wilson Webb/Netflix
A couple of years after The Meyerowitz Stories, slice-of-life filmmaker Noah Baumbach returns to the big-screen with divorce-drama Marriage Story – Netflix’s hot ticket this Awards season.
Charlie (Adam Driver) is a theatre director and Nicole (Scarlett Johansson) is a stage actress, often his leading lady; the pair have shared a seemingly loving, intimate marriage, raising their 8-year-old son Henry (Azhy Robertson) together. However, when the pair decide to end their marriage, we begin to see the toll that the divorce takes on their relationship and who they are the more complex it gets.
The film opens with both Charlie and Nicole narrating what they love about one another; over the voiceover, we get footage of the family in their stride and it’s adorable. We quickly get a sense of the love felt between this family, this couple especially, and it’s intense and beautiful. However, we find out they’ve written all this stuff about their partner for their therapy session – a result of their romance fading. It almost comes as a shock to the system given how burning the passion was momentarily before. What follows is Baumbach’s deep-dive into a failing marriage; it’s an examination of love and its fallout – delving into the tricky, complex and seedy web of lawyers that navigate the divorce process. Naturally, there’s a weight to the material; the tone inhabits a glint of sadness as we follow them during this time.
Yet Baumbach finds the heart and humour within the situation too; there’s a surprising amount of hope given the material and the script is littered with great comedy and levity that grounds the drama. But the reason it all lands with such a mega blow is because of the characters and how brilliantly the script realises them as likeable yet deeply flawed and real human beings.
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Authenticity is usually a given with any of his films and it’s gushing through the screen; Marriage Story is so impactful because the themes tackled are so relatable and it taps into such a personal place within its audiences. Every beat feels so earned, from the laughter to the tears, with the film beautifully layering and building to hit harder with every second that passes. It’s also a testament to the performances for realising the writing with such aplomb; the acting – across the board – within this film is astounding. Both Johansson and Driver get their individual time to shine, completely disappearing into their respective roles. The performances are subtle yet vulnerable; they also get the balance of comedic timing and more sombre acting right and it feels less like we’re watching a film and more like we are a fly on a wall listening into the lives of a real couple going through this real issue.
Marriage Story is Baumbach’s best film to date. It’s a towering achievement that so beautifully meanders through tones and life as we all do ourselves in our own day-to-day existence; it’s the kind of funny and melancholic that will have you in tears – whether they’re of sadness or joy, you decide. Whilst it can veer into dramatic territory, it never feels too depressing; even in those moments, it’s a bittersweet look at love and how a couple can feel their lives drifting apart whilst still very much feeling those feelings for one another. Randy Newman’s solemn score anchors everything gorgeously too. In a nutshell: this film is life. It’s beautiful. It’s sad. It’s a journey. Marriage Story takes you a journey with its characters and every single moment of it can be felt thanks to the masterful craft displayed by Baumbach, Driver and Johansson.
Marriage Story was reviewed at the 2019 Venice Film Festival. It will arrive on Netflix and select cinemas later in the year.
