Malcolm’s movie is a hit! So why is Marie upset?
A few reasons, it turns out. And so the best day of Malcolm’s life passes into the worst night. The couple argues on and off for hours, saying things that can never be unsaid.
The beginning is transfixing—even charming. There’s a hint of truth in celebrating with a drink, or cooking dinner for someone you’re upset with. But as time passes, the movie devolves into pretentiousness. Is anybody on earth this articulate at three in the morning? Who can possibly shrug off such devastating digs—and every twenty minutes, at that?
Exhausting is the word. Not because the floodgates of an unhealthy relationship are opening in the middle of the night, but because the movie does not feel like an argument; it feels like a movie that was written to fill two hours with one.
No amount of (gorgeous) camerawork or (unremarkable) acting can make up for this.