Marriage Story (2019)

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Marriage Story (2019) – N. Baumbach

I approached Marriage Story with some trepidation.  I’m not generally keen to evoke memories of my own past failed relationships (nor my parents’ divorce when I was a kid).  Bergman’s Scenes from a Marriage (the five-hour version from 1973) was challenging enough and I haven’t returned to Kramer vs. Kramer (1979) since my parents took us to it back then either.  Yet, I am mostly happy to report that I didn’t really identify with the characters in Marriage Story.  Adam Driver plays Charlie, a theatre director about to debut on Broadway and Scarlett Johansson plays Nicole, the lead actress in the theatre troupe, previously in Hollywood movies.  They have an 8-year-old son, Henry (Azhy Robertson).  Their relationship comes apart because Nicole feels that she has lost her identity and that Charlie selfishly dominates all of their decisions (and he also slept with another woman).  She moves with Henry to LA to be with her mother (Julie Hagerty) and family and to star in a TV series.  Charlie and Nicole are apparently based on director Noah Baumbach and Jennifer Jason Leigh who are also divorced. So, it is no surprise that the movie seems to take Charlie’s point-of-view and is somewhat more sympathetic to him – or is that just my “male” perception of the film?  Nicole clearly has some valid points but her decision to hire tough divorce lawyer, Nora (played enthusiastically by Laura Dern), does take their negotiations in an antagonistic direction, even as we know that the couple still loves each other.  Charlie’s mild-mannered lawyer (Alan Alda) is no real match for Nora.  As viewers, we hope that everything turns out OK for everyone, including Henry who is caught in the middle and clearly more of a mother’s boy (perhaps justifiably so), swaying the custody battle.  It’s all very complicated just as reality is; the acting by the principals is strong and nuanced, the screenplay feels mostly authentic with lots of small “moments” (but I’m not that convinced by that one “unfair” fight) – yet, these people are not like people I know.  Something keeps them at a distance (their social status, perhaps? Or have I been away from the US too long?).  In any event, a failure to identify probably protected me from unpleasant emotions.  Thoughtful music plays.