The Drama

The less you know going into The Drama, the better. Director Kristoffer Bergli sends up back and forth between meet-cute and wedding night as Zendaya and Robert Pattinson play Emma and Charlie, a soon to be married couple, in the lead-up to their wedding day. All is going well, until the couple, sat opposite their maid of honour (Alana Haim) and best man (Mamoudou Athie) just days before the wedding, each decide to reveal the worst thing they have ever done. From this moment on, The Drama is relentlessly shocking and morbidly hilarious. Joined by a small supporting cast, Zendaya and Pattinson lead this well-paced black comedy as it not only pushes its protagonists’ romantic relationship to its limits but observes just how easily friendships can suffer the consequences of a couple’s brutal honesty. Alana Haim’s Rachel stands out as a scoldingly judgemental constant in a film which is otherwise in never-ending motion, but the emotional core of the film is undeniably Pattinson’s Charlie. From his cringe-inducingly awkward opening scene, Charlie is an extension of the audience. His reactions to the unfolding of the titular ‘drama’ are often reflective of the audience’s own. It’s when Charlie’s choices begin to stray from what the audience might agree with that The Drama becomes truly biting. As Charlie’s unpredictability comes to head with Zendaya’s tragically honest Emma, the film lines itself for an awesome and explosive finale. The Drama doesn’t slow down and doesn’t take a moment to breathe. It sits in its own awkwardness and unbearable tension. Ultimately, The Drama asks just how much a lover is willing to overlook when they discover their fiancé isn’t quite who they proposed to.

Sam Capper