This article includes spoilers for “The Drama.”
Lately, there seems to be an appetite for atypical romance films that subvert the genre with social commentary about the world around us rather than a sweeping love story. That trend seemed most apparent last year with Celine Song’s sophomore film “The Materialists,” a thoughtful look at modern dating culture, released by A24.
Now, nearly a year later, A24 returns with another offbeat romance steeped in societal reflection: “The Drama,” director Kristoffer Borgli’s dark spin on a rom-com starring Zendaya and Robert Pattinson.
Like most romances tested by conflict, Borgli centers his film around the fallout of a moral dilemma: Could you forgive the person you love most for the worst thing they’ve ever done — even if it contradicts everything you stand for?
Those are the tough questions the film poses, as a long-buried secret implodes a happily engaged couple’s relationship on the eve of their wedding.
