The Drama
April 1st, 2026
MOVIE: THE DRAMA
STARRING: ZENDAYA, ROBERT PATTINSON, ALANA HAIM, MAMOUDOU ATHIE
DIRECTED BY: KRISTOFFER BORGLI
AMovieGuy.com’s RATING: 3 STARS (Out of 4)
RATED: R
RUN TIME: 106 MINUTES
On the surface, The Drama presents itself as a romantic comedy, but the romance quickly fades, and the humor is as black as midnight. Writer-director Kristoffer Borgli– who broke into the mainstream with the Nicolas Cage-led Dream Scenario– has always embraced provocation. His earlier film, Sick of Myself, was deeply unsettling, following a woman who deliberately makes herself ill for attention. With The Drama, Borgli turns his focus toward American culture, the complexities of forgiveness, and the standards by which we judge others. The result is a film that provokes discomfort and reflects a bleak view of modern life. It may not be perfect, but it will certainly spark conversation.
The story centers on Emma (Zendaya) and Charlie (Robert Pattinson), an engaged couple preparing for their wedding. As they write their vows, Charlie recounts to his best friend Mike (Mamoudou Athie) the story of how they met: Emma was sitting in a café reading, unaware of his attempts to flirt because she is deaf in one ear. Charlie pretends to have read the same book just to get close to her- and, fortunately for him, it works. Emma, meanwhile, confides in her friend Rachel (Alana Haim) that Charlie is her first real love, a result of her shy, isolated upbringing. Together, they believe their relationship can withstand anything…or so they hope.
That assumption is quickly challenged. During a wedding tasting, the group plays a game in which they confess the worst things they’ve ever done. Mike admits to once using his girlfriend as a shield against a rabid dog; Rachel reveals she locked a child in a closet and never told anyone; and Charlie confesses to possibly cyberbullying someone. But Emma’s secret is far more serious- so much so that it causes Charlie, in particular, to question everything he thought he knew about her.
Revealing Emma’s transgression would spoil the film’s central dilemma, but Borgli uses it to explore a familiar yet unsettling idea: we never truly know the people closest to us, and some secrets remain buried for a reason. The film evokes the biblical notion of “he who is without sin, cast the first stone,” as each character is weighed down by their own moral failings, both minor and severe. Even small hypocrisies, like accusing a wedding DJ of drug use or Charlie’s initial lie in their meet-cute, contribute to the larger question: once everything is exposed, can love and happiness survive? Borgli offers no easy answers.
For better and worse, The Drama is committed to challenging its audience, and that kind of provocative filmmaking feels increasingly rare in 2026. Still, the film is not without flaws. Its runtime drags, and the climactic wedding sequence veers from cringe-inducing to outright exhausting. While Pattinson and Zendaya share strong chemistry, Borgli underdevelops Emma, focusing more on Charlie’s reaction than her interior life.
Even so, The Drama remains an engaging, if uneven, experience- one that invites debate long after the credits roll. For better or worse, in sickness and in health, it’s a film I’m willing to say “I do” to.
3 STARS
THE DRAMA IS PLAYING IN THEATERS THIS FRIDAY, APRIL 3RD, 2026.
Written by: Leo Brady
