Malcolm & Marie (2021)
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2025-09 to 2026-08
A writer-director and his girlfriend face a grueling night of confrontation and revelation following the premiere of his latest film.
The story
Following the premiere of his latest film, writer-director Malcolm Elliott and his girlfriend, Marie Jones, return home to find their relationship strained by underlying tensions. When Marie expresses her displeasure over his lack of acknowledgment during his acceptance speech, a heated debate ensues regarding the inspiration behind his film's lead character. As the night progresses, the couple navigates a series of intense arguments and personal revelations, forced to confront their perceptions of each other's roles in their lives and the artistic choices made during the filmmaking process.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
After the premiere of his film, Malcolm Elliott and his girlfriend Marie Jones engage in a series of volatile confrontations. Marie feels sidelined by Malcolm's lack of public acknowledgment and believes his film's protagonist, Imani, is a direct reflection of her own life as a former drug addict. Malcolm defends his artistic choices, claiming the character is an amalgamation of various influences. The tension escalates as they argue over his perceived ego, his reaction to critical reviews, and his decision not to cast her in the lead role. During a heated moment, Marie performs a scene as Imani with a knife to demonstrate her authenticity. The night ends with a weary, silent agreement to go to bed, and the film concludes with the two of them looking out at the distance in the morning, leaving the ultimate fate of their relationship ambiguous.
- First release year
- 2021
- Runtime (minutes)
- 106
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Sam Levinson
- Writers
- Sam Levinson · writer
- Cast and characters
- Zendaya · Marie Jones; John David Washington · Malcolm Elliott
- Genres
- romantic drama
- Themes
- Relationship conflict; Artistic integrity; Identity
- Tone and mood
- Intense; Confrontational
- Premise and plot tags
- Two-hander; Drama; Meta-fiction
- Reception
- The film received mixed reviews from critics, who praised the lead performances and chemistry but criticized the screenplay and the age gap between the actors.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 57% · scale: percentage · review count: 252; Metacritic · score: 53 · scale: 100 · review count: 44
- Awards and nominations
- Best Actress · Critics' Choice Awards · Nominated
- Production trivia
- The film was the first Hollywood feature to be entirely written, financed, and produced during the COVID-19 lockdowns.; The film was shot in black-and-white on 35 mm film.; The production was kept very confined with no more than 12 people allowed on set at a time.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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