A24 released their newest movie, “The Drama,” on April 3, and it holds to their reputation of twisty and unexpected films. Starring Zendaya and Robert Pattinson, the movie follows a couple who face a startling revelation the week before their wedding that could change everything. 

SPOILERS AHEAD! 

The movie’s main characters, Emma and Charlie, are finishing up preparations for their wedding when their friends, the maid of honor, Rachel, and best man, Mike, suggest they play a game Mike and Rachel played before their wedding: telling each other the worst thing they’ve ever done. 

Their friends offer up their confessions, then Charlie admits he once cyberbullied a boy so badly that he had to move schools. Emma tries to resist answering, but eventually admits her secret.

When she was in high school, she planned and prepared to commit a school shooting. 

She was ready to go through with it when the news hit that another mass shooting had occurred in their town. She described it as waking up from a bad dream, and realized that her plans were awful. She quickly changed her mind and even went on to be a bit of an activist against gun violence. 

Her friends are rightfully stunned, and her maid of honor, Rachel, played by Alana Haim, explodes with anger over Emma’s confession. Charlie is left wondering if he really knows the woman he loves.

The rest of the movie revolves around Charlie and Emma’s attempts to understand and trust each other again. Charlie begs Emma to tell him why she would ever consider such a drastic action. 

The truth is a lot simpler than one might think.

Emma had gotten caught up in the romanticization of gun violence and the perceived glory of it. She saw the aesthetics of guns and the fearful respect school shooters garnered. As a lonely and bullied girl, acceptance was what she wanted, and shooting up her school was the path she saw to get it. 

I won’t try to explain away what she did. Planning a mass shooting is vile, but perhaps what happened to her isn’t such an uncommon thing. 

In America, it’s easy to become desensitized to gun violence. Movies constantly idolize heroes who kill with guns. Gore is on movie screens constantly. Every other day, the news reports a new shooting. 

Gun violence is on the TV, social media, radio and in the words of every person you talk to. The movie makes this point: how many people have you walked past who have considered a shooting? In a world where gun deaths are so common, statistically, how many more people would have at least thought about it? 

I should point out that while the movie talks about the romanticization of gun violence, it does not itself romanticize it. Emma condemns her actions, and the characters ostracize and judge her for it.  

I thought the movie was great. I’m a sucker for movies with insightful undertones, so this was right up my alley. It talked about empathy and forgiveness, how we respond to past trauma and unexpected truths. It was just thought-provoking enough while still holding my attention for two fun hours.

The film has incredible cinematography that makes it super unsettling. Awkward dialogue makes the movie feel real and startling, while split-second images of hypothetical situations and violence show the character’s thoughts and mental spirals. Intense music scores highlight the stress each character is under. 

Zendaya and Pattinson’s acting was amazing as well. Zendaya expertly portrayed guilt and shame, while Pattinson depicted bargaining and painful acceptance. They showed how love is not as one-dimensional as the movies make it out to be. 

It was certainly less of a romance than it was advertised, most likely on purpose, but the true love and forgiveness were very present. Mistakes were made, but love overcomes.  

“The Drama” was a deep and moving exposé on the unspoken issues around school shootings. It begs the question of whether we are more than the worst thing we’ve ever done.

Categories: Arts & Entertainment