How Accurate Was Netflix’s Marriage Story in its Divorce Depiction?
Marriage Story, a Netflix original movie starring Adam Driver, Scarlett Johansson and Laura Dern, has received critical acclaim and a variety of Oscar nominations and wins. The story focuses on Charlie (Driver) and Nicole (Johansson), who are going through the process of a divorce while raising a son. The pair start off hoping to get through the process amicably, but are eventually unable to do so, and the process gets increasingly contentious.
If you’ve seen the movie, you might be wondering how accurately the movie depicts the divorce process. Many attorneys and therapists have said it actually does so quite well.
Takeaways from the movie
There are a variety of issues the movie deals with that will resonate very strongly with viewers who have been through the divorce process themselves. One of these is the feeling that Charlie was more content in the marriage than Nicole because it primarily served him and his needs. Nicole frequently dreamed of moving back to Los Angeles, but Charlie’s livelihood required them to be in New York, and their living there served him better than it did her.
Nicole admits she should have better communicated her desires, but even after she does, Charlie doesn’t take them seriously and does not seem receptive to them.
The movie also does a good job of portraying how each partner had a different perception of the relationship, something that will often come up in real-life divorces. One party might not realize they’re taking charge of all the decision making or that they’re exerting their influence in a manipulative, possibly malicious way.
Finally, the movie does a great job of examining the emotions each spouse can feel in the process.
Viewers don’t get much of a look into coparenting during the divorce process, and this is one of the hardest parts of any divorce. But from an emotional standpoint, and from a therapy standpoint, the dynamics of the relationship are displayed quite realistically.
To learn more about what the divorce process looks like, contact an experienced Long Island divorce lawyer at Bryan L. Salamone & Associates.