“Malcolm & Marie”, one of the most eagerly awaited films in the Netflix catalog, is on the platform from February 5th 2021 and was shot in the midst of the pandemic.
The idea is by Zendaya, the protagonist as well as actor John David Washington and the movie was directed by visionary Sam Levinson.
What is Malcolm & Marie about?
It is not a love story but the story of love. Yes, the difference is subtle, but it entirely encompasses the meaning of the film and is the key that makes it different from all the others starring a couple.
Because here we do not see dull romanticisms or happy endings after breaking down obstacles, but rather we witness the realism of two people that face obstacles everyday, absorbing each other's life experiences, sometimes improving themselves and drawing something good from them, other times instead deriving frustration and discontent.
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Malcolm is a director who has just attended, accompanied by his girl Marie, the acclaimed preview of his film. The two return to their home after the big night and the entire film will take place right here, in their own home. What happens between the two, after the night out, is anything but a celebration.
In fact, we are witnessing continuous animated discussions and bitter exchanges of opinion. It will seem to be a fly in their apartment and witness the most intimate details of their relationship. The two are completely naked in front of each other, not refraining from bringing out the worst in themselves and it takes unfounded courage.
Marie is deeply disappointed by the lack of “thank you” from Malcolm during the preview, even more so because she is convinced that she was his inspiring muse. Malcolm justifies himself by saying that he did not draw the character of his hit film solely from her, which would in fact be the result of many other people he met in the course of his life.
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The main point is “but would Malcolm's film have been just as good if he hadn't had Marie by his side?”The answer is no. “Would Marie be exactly as she is if she wasn't with Malcolm?” Again, no. One of the themes is therefore that of lack of gratitude, of stopping for a moment to think “how does the person I love enrich me, am I grateful for or take it for granted”?
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When the reconciliation seems to arrive between the two, here is another quarrel around the corner, Marie is a skilled actress, why didn't her beloved choose her as the protagonist?
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Everything is made even more profound and poetic by the fact that the film is entirely in black and white, nothing distracts from the couple, on the contrary it is possible to empathize more with them and their humanity, we have all been a little bit Marie and a little bit Malcolm.
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Furthermore, as an original interlude, between a short respite and the other, the two also communicate through songs, what is not said during the silence, they let the music say it. It is an excellent expedient to let the viewer breathe after all the climaxes, even if continuing to assert the two points of view represented, without interrupting the narrative flow.
Malcolm and Marie also confront each other on problematic issues external to the couple: from the political use of films, to racism in cinema (both being African Americans), from commercial cinema to positive and negative criticism.
What keeps them linked is the universal dialogue, the confrontation on various issues, personal and otherwise, where there is all the hatred that sometimes hides love when there is still passion.
You may or may not understand the crazy relationship between the two, but it certainly will not leave you indifferent.
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