History Film / MalcolmAndMarie

* AgeGapRomance: Malcolm is older than Marie. They met when she was 20 and he was implied to be in his late 20s or early 30s. This factors into the imbalance in their relationship, being younger contributes to how superfluous and used Marie feels. The actors portraying them share an age gap of 12 years.

* CrazyJealousGuy: {{Inverted|Trope}}. Marie says Malcolm is the ''least'' jealous man she's ever dated, and this bothers her. She feels he takes her for granted, and that one expression of this is how he's not at all concerned about losing her. She later theorizes that he's not jealous because he's such an egomaniac he can't imagine Marie thinking any other guy is better than him.

* NobodyPoops: At one point, the couple finally stops fighting and starts making out. Malcolm has to stop for a moment to go pee. While he's gone, Marie's mind drifts back to their fight, and by the time he gets back, she's in a different mood and ready to fight some more.

* UnderappreciatedWomensWork: Their grievances are focused mostly on their creative careers, but at the end Marie gives a long monologue of the things that her boyfriend Malcolm ought to thank her for--but hasn't--and many of them are household, caretaking things.

* CrazyJealousGuy: {{Inverted|Trope}}. Marie says Malcolm is the ''least'' jealous man she's ever dated, and this bothers her. She feels he takes her for granted, and that one expression of this is how he's not at all concerned about losing her. She later theorizes that he's not jealous because he's such an egomaniac, he can't imagine Marie thinking any other guy is better than him.

* {{Hypocrite}}: Malcolm repeatedly rails about how his race is interpreted in the film industry -- but as Marie keeps pointing out, it's not like he's doesn't participate in it.

* WriteWhatYouKnow: InUniverse, Malcolm's film about a young female drug addict trying to get clean strongly draws from his girlfriend Marie's story (among others), and she's upset with him for not involving her as much as he could have or crediting her properly afterwards.

* CrazyJealousGuy: {{Inverted|Trope}}. Marie says Malcolm is the least jealous man she's ever dated, and this bothers her. She feels he takes her for granted, and that one expression of this is how he's not at all concerned about losing her. She later theorizes that he's not jealous because he's such an egomaniac, he can't imagine Marie thinking any other guy is better than him.

* {{Hypocrite}}:
** Malcolm repeatedly rails about how his race is interpreted in the film industry -- but as Marie keeps pointing out, it's not like he's doesn't participate in it.

* AgeGapRomance: Malcolm is older than Marie. they met when she was 20 and he was implied to be in his late 20s or early 30s. This factors into the imbalance in their relationship, being younger contributes to how superfluous and used Marie feels. The actors portraying them share an age gap of 12 years.

* {{Hypocrite}}: Malcolm repeatedly rails about how his race is interpreted in the film industry -- but as Marie keeps pointing out, it's not like he's doesn't participate in it.

* AgeGapRomance: Malcolm is older than Marie (they met when she was 20 and he was implied to be in his late 20s or early 30s), which factors into the imbalance in their relationship (as being younger contributes to how superfluous and used Marie feels). The actors portraying them also share an age gap of 12 years.
* AllTakeAndNoGive: Both main characters claim they're contributing more to this relationship than the other.

-->'''Marie:''' It also makes me realize, the reason you don’t get jealous […] -- the reason why you never wonder if you’re the best fuck I’ve ever had, or the most talented person I’ve ever been with, or the kindest, or the smartest -- it’s because it is inconceivable to you that there is anybody on this planet that is more interesting than you are.

-->'''Marie:''' When you first wrote it, you wrote it for me. So why didn’t you cast me? […] At some point, Malcolm, this was something that we were gonna do together. And I don’t know when that changed.

** "The white girl from the ''LA Times''," a film critic who Malcolm loathes and also is kind of obsessed with, bordering on SitcomArchNemesis.

-->'''Malcolm:''' You may have gotten clean, but you still haven’t figured this part out. Why you love being hurt, traumatized and fucking eviscerated? It’s not normal, it’s not healthy, and it permeates every aspect of our relationship.
* {{Hypocrite}}: Malcolm, on several fronts.
** He repeatedly rails about how his race is interpreted and politicized in the film industry -- but as Marie keeps pointing out, it's not like he's doesn't feed into it.

--->'''Malcolm:''' I mean, we get it. You’re smart. We get it. You’re woke. We get it, we get it. Let us, us artists, have some fucking fun with the shit. Let us have fun with the art.\\

'''Malcolm:''' ''({{beat}})'' Yeah, but that’s different. That’s different.

--->'''Marie:''' You have two parents, no bad habits other than being a fucking prick, and a college education. Your mother is a therapist. Your father is a professor. Your sister works for a think tank in D.C. But out here, on these streets, these smiling fucking rich people, they think you know what it’s like to scrap, think you fucking lived it. Give me a break. You’re more privileged than the white girl who works for the ''LA Times'', who thinks she’s doing a public service by lifting up your mediocre ass.

'''Malcolm:''' She might’ve talked about the redistribution of wealth, lack of social programs…\\
'''Marie:''' While selling a film? For $15 a ticket? […] You got an actress in a $2,000 dress, talkin’ about socialism on a red carpet because she’s too afraid to admit that -- guess what -- she’s just a fuckin’ actor.

-->'''Marie:''' I just never thought that you’d shoot [that scene in your movie] with her top off.\\
'''Malcolm:''' What’s the difference?\\

* ProfessionalButtKisser: An InformedAttribute, since we only see Malcolm in his relationship with Marie, but according to her, he is very accommodating in his professional life.
-->'''Malcolm:''' It’s my job to make [my lead actress] feel comfortable, Marie.\\

'''Marie:''' What I’m saying is you spend your entire life catering to the feelings and the whims of literally everyone but me. Agents, producers, crew members, actors…

''Malcolm & Marie'' is a 2021 romantic drama film written, co-produced and directed by Creator/SamLevinson (''Film/AssassinationNation'', ''Series/{{Euphoria}}''), starring Creator/{{Zendaya}} and Creator/JohnDavidWashington.

'''Marie:''' Because it is more. [...] It's our entire fucking relationship in a nutshell.

* AllTakeAndNoGive: Both claim they're contributing more to this relationship than the other.
** Marie says she substantially supports Malcolm in his career, both practically and creatively, and doesn't even get so much as acknowledgement in return. Malcolm says this isn't selfless on Marie's part, nor even what he wants--Marie over-invests in his life, has few activities of her own, and he wishes she were more independent and stable.
** Malcolm says he supported Marie through the messy process of getting sober, forgave her for cheating on him once. Marie says this wasn't a selfless of Malcolm--she was interesting material for a story, and that kept him around more than love did.
* BuildingOfAdventure: The whole film takes place in the fancy Malibu house the studio out them up in. An EnforcedTrope, since the COVID pandemic meant that travel was forbidden at the time.
* ComplimentBackfire: Midway through the film, the first review of Malcolm's film comes in, and it's positive. The problem Malcolm finds is that it was written by a white female critic that he described early on in the film as being incredibly insincere, praising him as a black man and not as a filmmaker. He points out that she calls him the next Creator/SpikeLee, Creator/BarryJenkins, or Creator/JohnSingleton, and when he asks "What about the next Creator/WilliamWyler?", her response is "Was William Wyler black?" As for the review itself, he's incensed that she spends most of it talking about race, when he insists the movie isn't about race at all but about trying to get clean and sober, and is especially offended by her claim that the white doctor in the film avoids being made into a white savior.

* CrazyJealousGuy: InvertedTrope. Marie says Malcolm is the least jealous man she's ever dated, and this bothers hers. She feels he takes her for granted, and that one expression of this is how he's not at all concerned about loosing her. She later theorizes that he's not jealous because he's such an egomaniac he can't imagine Marie thinking any other guy is better than him.

* [[invoked]]CreatorCouple: At some point early on, there ''was'' some plan for Marie to play Imani. And then it didn't happen. Malcolm says he dropped the idea because Marie seemed reluctant. Marie says she seemed reluctant because she thought Malcolm didn't want her involved. Malcolm says Marie self-sabotaged. Marie says Malcolm was too self-centered to share it.

** Taylor, the actress who played the staring role of Imani in Malcolm's film. Marie has an AlwaysSomeoneBetter complex around her.
** "The white girl from ''The LA Times''," a film critic who Malcolm loathes and also is kind of obsessed with, boarding on SitcomArchNemesis.
* HasAType: Marie is apparently only the latest in a whole string of broken girls -- not uncommonly addicts -- who Malcolm's been with. His character Imani is a conglomeration of all of them. While he claims he wants Marie to improve herself, get healthier and more independent, the fact that he's been consistently drawn to damaged women throws some doubt over whether he'd be happy if she actually did.

* {{Hypocrite}}: Malcolm repeatedly rails about how his race is interpreted and politicized in the film industry -- but as Marie keeps pointing out, it's not like he's doesn't feed into it.
** Malcolm gripes about the white, woke, university-based, media studies types who he's anticipating reviewing his work. But he himself has a college degree in the arts.

** Malcolm complains about his work being viewed as political-- but his next film is going to be an overtly political {{biopic}}.

** Malcolm complains about being viewed as a "black director", but according to Marie he somewhat brands himself as such. He lets--or perhaps even leads--people in the industry to assume he's been affected by the sorts of disadvantages that disproportionately affect black people, even though he's actually from a stable, privileged background.

* MaleGaze: DiscussedTrope. In the first review of Malcolm's movie, the female film critic criticizes a scene that features the lead actress topless. Marie brings it up later, implying she agrees in part. Malcolm says it wasn't even his idea, that was a [[invoked]]ThrowItIn creative decision made by the actress playing the role.

* TheManIsStickingItToTheMan

* MinimalistCast: Malcolm and Marie are the only characters.

* MsFanservice: Marie spends the first half of the movie wearing a dress with a huge cutout over the stomach. Then she takes a bath and dresses for bed. For the later half of the film she's wearing underwear and a white tank top. Her breasts are pretty visible through the shirt. Lampshaded when Malcolm says that -- since ThisIsReality -- Marie being partly undressed in her own home late at night is unremarkable, but if this were a movie it would suddenly be described as the director sexualizing the character.

* TheMuse: Deconstructed. Marie is Malcolm's muse, but she feels alienated from his work and hurt by how he uses her life story.

* NobodyPoops: They finally stop fighting and start making out. Malcolm has to stop for a moment to go pee. While he's gone, Marie's mind drifts back to their fight. By the time he gets back she's in a different mood and ready to fight some more.

* ProfessionalButtKisser: An InformedAttribute, since we only see Malcolm in his relationship with Marie. But according to Marie, Malcolm is very accommodating in his professional life.

* RealTime: Their fight begins at 1 am, and lasts about 1 hour 40 minutes of screen time. Then they finally to bed. They sleep, and we get the only elapsed time in the film, ending with a brief final scene of them in the yard at dawn.

* SnubByOmission: Malcolm forgot to thank his girlfriend Marie during his speech, which hurt her feelings as (a) he thanked a long list of other people and (b) she believes herself to be the inspiration for his film.

* TheUnfairSex: Both Malcolm and Marie are flawed people. Malcolm is an egomaniac. Marie is willingly with this guy, demonstrating a masochistic or self-sabotaging tendency. Malcolm's central flaw is outward and impacts those around him. Marie's is inward and impacts mostly just herself. Thus, Malcolm comes off as worse.