The Drama is one of those movies that’s instantly polarizing. Its topic and style will produce mixed reactions. I knew this going into the film, because I saw a TMZ article that spoiled the main topic before the movie even hit theaters. This instantly made me hesitant to watch The Drama.
Then I saw some of the critics’ reactions. This made me even more cautious about watching The Drama. It’s a serious subject matter that I don’t think should ever be played for laughs. When I actually watched the movie, the conversations around it became a lot more nuanced than expected.
Warning: The Drama spoilers are ahead. Proceed with caution. Trigger warning about topics of gun violence and murder.
The Drama Was More About Factors That Lead To School Shootings Than The Act Of Them
TMZ’s article talked about a parent being upset about The Drama covering the topic of a school shooting. I was immediately disgusted by the idea. In the film, Emma (Zendaya) reveals to her fiancé and friends that the worst thing she ever did was plan a school shooting. She didn’t execute it, but came close. A24 marketed the movie as a romantic comedy. Therefore, I automatically expected the film to try to make light of the situation and focus on the love story between Emma and Charlie (Robert Pattinson).
Because of Zendaya and Pattinson, The Drama was one of the upcoming A24 movies that I looked forward to seeing the most. Learning about the twist made me lose some interest. However, I still planned to watch it in theaters or when it became available to stream. Once I watched the movie, I found myself less outraged and more understanding of what writer and director Kristoffer Borgli tries to convey with The Drama.
Emma tells Charlie about how she became fascinated by the idea of a mass murder and guns. Then she tells him why she didn’t go through with it, and then she became radicalized in the opposite direction. She became an advocate against guns and violence. Young Emma (Jordyn Curet) is portrayed as highly impressionable.
She doesn’t know how to deal with her emotions, so she glamorizes something dark and disturbing. However, through these school-mandated programs, she starts to see the humanity behind the people she almost killed. One of The Drama’s most powerful scenes is just Emma looking at one of her potential victims. She cries because she seemingly finally grasps the severity of the situation
Not everyone who does a mass shooting is just a lost child. I think that’s why some people have problems with the movie. It humanizes and reduces something so devastating to a simple concept. A lot of these people who end up committing these acts have mental health issues, or lack empathy, or suffer from other behavioral problems. However, Emma isn’t the poster child for all mass shooters. She represents a group of them who are impressionable children who find comfort in the wrong things. She is not the archetype for school shooters.
I Found Myself Sympathizing With Emma More Than Expected
The Drama kind of portrays Emma as someone who just grew out of this phase because of finding friends, a cause, and these programs. That’s not necessarily the best way to treat this situation, but Emma represents a certain type of child. The film is critical of modern times. We live in an age where there is so much information to absorb and consume. Therefore, children can, unfortunately, be influenced by what and how much information they watch or read a day. They can be radicalized in the wrong ways by group chats, social media, television, music, etc.
Many children who are bullied don’t automatically decide to kill people. Nonetheless, there are children who find themselves easily influenced by things around them, especially if they spend too much time by themselves searching the internet. Many parents are too busy and drained to regulate everything their child consumes, especially during key development stages. Emma should be judged and persecuted (in a way) for her almost actions.
However, we must remember that she’s a young child who was influenced because she had easy access to too many things and not enough restrictions, guidance, and the development of social norms. Emma isn’t portrayed like every teen, but some may relate to her feeling of isolation and the desire to hurt others, but never acting on those desires. This is a scary reality that we unfortunately face in today’s society.
I Felt Conflicted About Charlie’s Behavior
The Drama has a very harsh twist that makes the movie work. Charlie is put in a nearly impossible situation. He learns that his future wife almost committed a heinous crime. No one would know how to handle the situation. You instantly relate to him. I think many would leave their fiancé, but some may try to work past it. Charlie cannot make a decision.
That’s where the problems with this character start. He continues to be indecisive on whether to protect her from the discussions and judgment, or to leave her because she’s not who he thought she was, and now can’t understand who she is and almost was. Charlie then starts to engage in his own bad behavior, including almost having sex with a coworker.
He starts to morph into a bit of a villain. That’s where the comedy of The Drama resides. It’s in Charlie’s extreme behavior. I found myself annoyed with him at times, but then I remind myself that I don’t know how I would handle the situation.
However, Charlie is frustrating because he just didn’t communicate with Emma. Instead of being fully honest, he continued to try to pretend everything was okay. This led to things continuing to escalate and go downhill.
The School Shooting Aspects Were Still Hard To Deal With, But I Didn’t Ever Feel Like The Movie Was Desensitized To The Victims
I am still conflicted by The Drama. This type of film can be very triggering for families of victims of mass shootings. People need to be warned before seeing it. It also humanizes Emma, and some may not want to see people who did or could do this humanized, when this type of thing causes so much devastation.
Rachel (Alana Haim)’s cousin is a victim of a school shooting. It has left her paralyzed. The character only briefly appears in The Drama, but I never felt like the movie was making fun of her or what happened to her. It just needed someone to represent a victim of these hideous acts. I can only speak from my perspective, so others may have viewed and reacted to the movie differently because of their lived experiences.
They are right for whatever they felt about The Drama. I never saw the movie as desensitized to the victims and their families. I saw it as a movie that showcases a couple handling a nearly impossible situation. And a movie trying to show and criticize how too much access to a developing mind can lead down dark roads.
I Still Can’t Believe Emma And Charlie Got Married
I think The Drama will join the list of movies with controversial endings. Emma and Charlie have the wedding from hell because Charlie never communicates his thoughts and fears about her. He lets them get married when they shouldn’t have. The Drama is not going to be on any best rom-com of all-time lists because it almost feels like an anti-rom-com.
The movie ends with them starting over, but I think they should have moved on.
