Marriage Story (2019)

Director: Noah Baumbach

Starring: Scarlett Johansson, Adam Driver, Laura Dern

Noah Baumbach’s incisive and compassionate look at a marriage breaking up and a family staying together.

Ok, so why would a film about a couple going through a divorce make for interesting viewing?

Nicole is an actress and Charlie is a theatre director. The film starts with Nicole (Scarlett Johansson) and Charlie (Adam Driver) reflecting on each other’s good qualities. We then realize they are actually in the process of splitting up, but nevertheless seem to be friends. Off course, this is before things start going wrong between them…or should that be worsen between them?

Oh, whatever, this film did nothing for my senses from the very beginning. ‘Marriage Story’ is a dialogue driven movie. I mean, DIALOGUE! Wow, there’s a lot of dialogue here…with not much else happening in the process except for a couple constantly disagreeing about everything. I like it when something actually HAPPENS in a movie…apart from conversation, that is.

Due to the film’s somber mood, all attempts at throwing in a bit of humour failed. If watching a couple going through a divorce is your thing (or if you are in the midst of a divorce settlement), then maybe you can relate and this is your type of movie. As for me, however, I found this snooze-fest incredibly boring, way too much talk, and ultimately not a very pleasant watch. These type of movies bore me to death. To add to this, it has a runtime of 137 minutes!!! Yawn!

The performances were very natural, but alas, it couldn’t save the movie for me. This might be a highly acclaimed multi-award winning movie, but I was not entertained…

‘Marriage Story’ received 403 award nominations, winning 128 including an Oscar. At the box office the film only earned $2.3 million on an $18 million budget. So, it’s critics versus audience, right…?

Would I watch it again? Yawn, what?