It seemed like an odd pairing at first when you see both Adam Driver (“Star Wars: The Force Awakens”) and Scarlett Johansson (“Avengers Endgame”) together as a couple. But it seems that “Marriage Story” will be up for some of the most prestigious film prizes come award season.
Directed and written by Noah Baumbach (“The Squid And The Whale” and “Frances Ha”), “Marriage Story
demonstrates the breakup of Charlie and Nicole’s (played by Driver and Johannson respectively) marriage and how the family tries to stay together for their young son.
The film is heavily inspired by Baumbach’s own divorce from Jennifer Jason Leigh (“The Hateful Eight”), the pain and the heartbreak from that is mirrored in “Marriage Story,” with Baumbach trying to do both characters justice all while retelling his own personal tragedy. But it isn’t all heartbreak, with elements of comedy sprinkled throughout to make you feel emotionally invested with the characters.
In Rodrigo Perez’s review of the film back at Venice Film Festival, he wrote. “Perhaps its own therapy, something Baumbach had to create just to make sense of the grief of it all, ‘Marriage Story’ is a moving and poignant tribute to a wound that bled so much, it almost killed you.” Dealing with something as painful as Baumbach went through is perhaps the only way for him to properly deal with it, pull it from the wreckage, make a story from it and put it on the screen.
Touted as Baumbach’s best film to date by many, including our own review, the film is already gaining much critical love. At the Venice Film Festival, the movie was nominated for Best Film, Baumbach was also the runner up for the People’s Choice Award at the Toronto Film Festival. Randy Newman won Composer Of The Year for his music in the film at the Hollywood Film Awards. The moving drama is also being touted for Oscars glory, showing that streaming giant Netflix is not messing around when it comes to producing award-winning projects.
The film co-stars a scintillating performance from Laura Dern (“Jurassic Park”) and features the likes of Ray Liotta (“Goodfellas”), Merritt Wever (“Signs”), Julia Hagerty (“Airplane!”) and Wallace Shawn (“The Princess Bride”).
READ MORE: ‘Judy,’ ‘Parasite’ & ‘Marriage Story’ Win Telluride’s Oscar Showcase
Here is the synopsis:
Noah Baumbach’s incisive and compassionate look at a marriage breaking up and a family staying together.
The film is coming to theaters November 6, and then releases on Netflix on December 6, a delightful yet heartbreak to watch with the family at Christmas time. Watch the new trailer below.