Oscar Isaac and Jessica Chastain are really gunning for the Emmy in this episode of Scenes From a Marriage. I believe I mentioned this in my review of the first episode, but I love how we all fawned over the steaminess these two actors emitted in the press for this HBO Max show. Only for us to get to the show and it is depressing, stressful, and the opposite of the chemistry we thought Chastain and Isaac had.
Slight Spoilers
Now, that’s not to say the two don’t work well off each other. I think it takes a lot of talent for these two to so realistically display an actual married couple on the verge of splitting up. From the moment the episode starts, we are hit with a startling revelation that stretches out through the entire hour. While other shows and movies may gloss over an affair or simply have it where two people are yelling at each other, we instead have this heartbreaking and stressful (I keep using that word) tug and pull between the married couple.
There were many times I considered clicking off. Again, not because it was bad. But, because it really felt like we were witness to an actual couple splitting up. Chastain really displayed a woman desperately trying to stop herself from suffocating in a relationship she wants to get out of. And Isaac does a phenomenal job in giving us a hurt man willing to forgive and look over anything just to keep the woman he loves. While I did feel, at times; Chastain’s character’s reasoning for her decision felt rushed and not well-thought-out, I felt convinced enough that her character just needed any outlet to get her out of her marriage. All the while I felt sympathy for Isaac’s character, who didn’t feel like they needed a divorce. It was difficult to watch and Isaac and Chastain do great jobs at portraying these characters.
Rating: 4.5/5
I don’t know if I have the emotional fortitude to make it through a third episode, but I’m going to try. In the meantime, you can check out the first two episodes of Scenes From a Marriage on HBO Max now.
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A girl with too many fandoms to count.
