Marriage Story

Marriage Story (2019) is the epitome of perfection. Everything from the script, to the acting, to the camera work, to the blocking. Noah Baumbach is such an incredible powerhouse of a filmmaker. The attention to detail is so impressive, all of the pictures on the walls in Sandra's house and the mentions of the actors previous works (i.e. Henry's Marvel bedsheets, mention of the Jaws ride etc.) The opening monolouges are so important to the story and from the first minute we already know so much about their relationship and life. The most prominent scene in this movie is of course the argument. "You're such a dick" And that scene is so well scripted, acted, but in my eyes, most importantly, so well blocked. The blocking and editing really is a dance that Baumbach practiced until perfection. The two other scenes with the most prominent blocking is the scene where Nicole first meets Nora, and of course the court scene. I could talk about these two scenes for every and the genuine effect it has on the story. My filmstudent brain goes crazy. If i ever were to get a Marriage Story tattoo, which I probably will, I think it would be either, "And what do you wanna do today?", as it has such a big inpact on the story; irst when Nicole says it to Henry, and then later when she tells Nora how that's all she wanted to hear from Charlie. Or I'd get "Somewhere between reasonable and crazy", because that line is hilarious. I don't think I've ever hated a character more than I hate Sandra, maybe Owen Hunt from Grey's Anatomy. She's so annoying and has so little respect for her daughters in any capacity. She's so toxic and even though Nicole loves her, she does not want to be the same with Henry. The songs both Nicole and Charlie sing are so important to me. When I first saw Marriage Story I didn't really understand why there's a three minute scene of Charlie singing a song. But after watching pretty much every interview there is about this movie and after seeing the actual musical both songs are from (Company, written by George Furth and Stephen Sondheim), I love it. I love the purposeful wrong editing in the mediator scene and the court scene. Both these scenes are heavily dependent on Nicole and Charlie's different views of the person infront of them and what they mean for both of them individually. In the mediator scene, they're both speaking for themselves whilst in the court scene they have lawyers speaking for them. I love how in the court scene, when there's a close up of one of them, you can always see the other blurred out in the background. They always will be in each others lives. All in all, after having seen this movie 23 times, I think I can say that I know a LOT about this moive. I've seen every interview, every video essay, read hundreds of reviews... This movie is a part of me and I will forever love it.

Very well acted and bittersweet for sure, this is a movie that didn't really touch me deeply, mainly because didn't grow up in a split family or ever been married or have kids, so this I'm sure speaks to those with those kind of experiences. Still, can appreciate the performances from both Scarlet Johansson and Adam Driver, proving once more how great actors they are and more than their respective blockbuster franchises. **4.0/5**

“I never really came alive for myself; I was only feeding his aliveness.” I’ve said some harsh things about Netflix movies in the past, but recently I’m starting to warm up to them. ‘Marriage Story’ was absolutely excellent. A devastating portrayal of divorce that can bring out the ugly in people, especially with child custody. But it’s not all doom and gloom. It’s incredibly heartfelt with plenty of humorous moments. I guess you have to find the comedy during the difficulties in life. Lets just say my cheeks wasn’t dry afterwards. And yes, I wept. Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson both gave masterclass performances. And I do mean some power house acting. Driver plays Charlie, a competitive and undaunted theater director that he is very clear about what he wants. Johansson plays Nicole, a mother who’s a delightful presence and loves to play, but is also a dedicated actor. This is the best I’ve seen from Johnasson. Her character delivers a monologue where she’s explains the issues in her life that’s all shot in one take, which brilliantly displays her acting chops where she naturally shifts from emotion to emotion - it was impeccable. The supporting cast were all fantastic. Lauren Dern, Ray Liotta, Merritt Wever, Julie Hagerty, and Alan Alda were all brilliant and really bounce off the energy from Driver and Johansson. Even the child actor held his own between these juggernauts of actors. Not only are the performances the strongest element of the movie, but so is the writing. Every character is so uniquely fleshed out that the conflict feels so incredibly raw. It’s one of the reasons why I was so glued to the movie from start to finish. One of the best screenplays of the year. This is the first Noah Baumbach movie I’ve seen from him and I am aware of his other work, just haven’t got around to watching them. However, I feel like this was the best introduction to him as a director, because he crafted such a sympathetic look on marriage dissolving away. We don’t see the full relationship, but we do get to hear Nicole and Charlie individually describe what their love about each other, while there’s a montage that flash’s through their routine life together with their son. Nothing visually striking in the presentation, but not once did it feel stale. The score from Randy Newman was terrific and fitted wonderfully with the movie. I loved the aspect ratio as it added a lot to the overall mood of the movie. When the two go head to head in the custody battle - that doesn't mean they’re enemies. They still talk to each other as if they are still a thing. It’s also hard to pick aside, because you understand where each of them are coming from, and even if you do choose, you still feel bad for either one. Overall rating: Any other relationship movie ain't sh*t compared to this.