Kristoffer Borgli’s “The Drama,” starring Robert Pattinson and Zendaya, was released in theaters on Friday. The film is the second A24 feature that Borgli has both written and directed, with the first being “Dream Scenario” in 2023.
The film’s premise is an intriguing one, asking, “What would you do if, the week before your wedding, your soon-to-be spouse reveals a disturbingly dark secret to you?” This is exactly what happens when Charlie (Pattinson) and his fiancée Emma (Zendaya) tell each other the worst thing they have ever done.
While the setup reads like something out of a psychological thriller, “The Drama” is surprisingly funny. However, its humor does not make Emma’s secret that she plotted a school shooting any less disturbing. Borgli’s ability to walk this fine line between comedy and unnerving tension is an art few can master.
The film also stands out in its use of sound as a medium. Going beyond background music, Borgoli also uses human voices to create ambience. At some points, background chatter becomes as loud as the actors’ dialogue, pulling moviegoers into the scene. At others, dialogue is muffled while an actor’s voice shifts exclusively to speakers on either side of the theater.
The acting in “The Drama” is solid overall. Pattinson and Zendaya are both critically acclaimed actors who seem to have easily embodied their characters. However, musician Alana Haim did not particularly shine as Emma’s maid of honor, Rachel, in the film. Haim’s acting skills came off as underdeveloped for a film where she stars alongside some of her generation’s greatest talents.
Still, moviegoers get to experience a standout performance from Jordyn Curet, who played a teenage Emma in flashback scenes. Curet, 17, has starred in minor roles across television and film before. However, her ability to lean into the unhinged nature of her role made for some of the funniest scenes in the film, scenes where Curet embodies the angst of a chronically online teenager desperately in need of attention.
The humor in Emma’s darkest teenage memories is captured by Borgoli through the lens of a responsible adult. While it may seem outright insane looking back, Emma’s actions were the result of a phenomenon many vulnerable youth have experienced in the age of the internet — a phenomenon wherein young people look to dangerous online subculture communities to find a sense of belonging. In the reactions of Emma’s fiancé and friends, Borgoli touches on the lack of understanding that exists in society for young people who have been radicalized online.
In a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Haim said the movie would spark, “hard discussions or very funny discussions or very sad discussions” among moviegoers after seeing the film. Upon finishing the film, I found myself asking what I would do if I was faced with a similar predicament that the film’s characters were in.
