Malcolm and Marie

Malcolm and Marie The plan was to read a book about love and review it just in time for Valentine's Day but I failed. Instead, I found myself nose deep in a book about slavery, don't get me wrong I loved the book but I don't think it's Valentine's Day review material. About a week ago, I watched Malcolm and Marie on Netflix, a modern Black and White movie. I solely watched because of the cast, Zendaya to be specific there is also John David Washington who's the son of The legendary Denzel Washington and I was keener to watch because I hadn't watched any of his work. Please note that the movie only has two characters, Malcolm and Marie. There's no one else, not even a delivery guy, it's just them from beginning to end. So the movie starts when the couple comes home from a movie premiere of a movie Malcolm directed, a movie loosely based on Marie's life. An argument immediately starts because Malcolm forgot to thank Marie during his speech and it was downhill from there. Don't get me wrong this doesn't mean the movie was bad, it was just uncomfortable. Maybe because I saw myself in Marie, sometimes in Malcolm, and sometimes it felt like a couple was having an intimate conversation, and I shouldn't be there to hear it all. Malcolm and Marie do not shy away from saying their piece, they weren't too afraid to "go there". I watched them cut each other with words, breaking each other down, going straight for the jugular and sometimes being straight-up cruel. A lot of themes were explored in this film, some about race but what stood out for me was vulnerability. Brené Brown defines vulnerability as " uncertainty, risk and emotional exposure". Vulnerability forces you to step out of your comfort zone and be raw. When you share your most intimate and vulnerable parts of your life with someone the worst thing they can do is use it against you, throw it in your face if I may put it. This is why I believe that vulnerability goes hand in hand with trust, that you know for sure that your name is safe in your partner's mouth, that even in heated arguments and when Life happens that which you have shared with them will not be used against you. Trust was broken in this regard between Malcolm and Marie. I saw them rip each other to shreds with their words. Maybe now it might be important to share that I watched this movie in two days, breaks are necessary because it is a bit triggering. Malcolm and Marie is not a love story but it is a beautiful movie, one that is worth watching maybe not on Valentine's Day though. Maybe Malcolm and Marie is a cautionary tale, I don't know but what I know for sure is those two actors gave an exceptional performance and that stories like these need to be told, plus the soundtrack was so bomb. Happy Valentine's Day Love and light Arehone