Marriage Story (2019) ****1/2
I'm not sure why, but I didn't expect to like Marriage Story (2019) as much as I did. In fact, I loved it. Maybe it's because while I greatly enjoy director Noah Baumbach's films, I've only flat-out loved one of his other films, The Squid And The Whale (2005) (another film about a couple with children going through a divorce). I guess I just have a thing for Baumbach's divorce films. But while Squid is much shorter and funnier, Marriage Story is a more somber and sobering affair.
Scarlett Johannson tends to be pretty hit or miss for me but she is quite good here—perfectly capturing a woman in her mid 30s desperately trying to take control of her life when it didn't head in the direction she intended. Adam Driver has become one of my favorite modern day actors—able to tackle comedy, introspective drama, and fantasy blockbusters with ease. He's at his best yet here, deftly displaying the emotions that Baumbach's excellent script calls for—joy, anger, crushing sadness.
The two actors have a lived-in quality that feels authentic and Baumbach masterfully captures their shortcomings, frustrations and pain in a way that never feels completely devoid of hope and never feels manufactured. The performances and the relatable situations speak for themselves, without the need to manipulate the audience. The film also does a great job of presenting both characters as flawed but likable people, never making one out to be the villain.
Marriage Story is Baumbach at his most Bergmanesque (Scenes From A Marriage (1974) being the most obvious connection), if Bergman made a NYC-cum-L.A. film. Laura Dern and Ray Liotta (barely recognizable at first) give strong supporting roles as dueling cutthroat lawyers. Randy Newman delivers another fitting score of Joplinesque rags and waltzes. One of the year's best and one of Baumbach's best films to date.
You can find my Noah Baumbach Feature Films Ranked list here.
Scarlett Johannson tends to be pretty hit or miss for me but she is quite good here—perfectly capturing a woman in her mid 30s desperately trying to take control of her life when it didn't head in the direction she intended. Adam Driver has become one of my favorite modern day actors—able to tackle comedy, introspective drama, and fantasy blockbusters with ease. He's at his best yet here, deftly displaying the emotions that Baumbach's excellent script calls for—joy, anger, crushing sadness.
The two actors have a lived-in quality that feels authentic and Baumbach masterfully captures their shortcomings, frustrations and pain in a way that never feels completely devoid of hope and never feels manufactured. The performances and the relatable situations speak for themselves, without the need to manipulate the audience. The film also does a great job of presenting both characters as flawed but likable people, never making one out to be the villain.
Marriage Story is Baumbach at his most Bergmanesque (Scenes From A Marriage (1974) being the most obvious connection), if Bergman made a NYC-cum-L.A. film. Laura Dern and Ray Liotta (barely recognizable at first) give strong supporting roles as dueling cutthroat lawyers. Randy Newman delivers another fitting score of Joplinesque rags and waltzes. One of the year's best and one of Baumbach's best films to date.
You can find my Noah Baumbach Feature Films Ranked list here.
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