When you’re a kid, marriage seems kind of easy. At least, the idea of marriage seems easy. You find someone, fall in love and once you have one or two kids, you kind of find yourself cemented to your partner. But the truth is that marriage is hard, love is hard and The Killing of Two Lovers, from writer/director Robert Machoian, puts that truth in center focus.
From its very first moments, The Killing of Two Lovers puts us in a state of heartbreaking anguish. David (Clayne Crawford), recently separated from his wife Niki (Sepideh Moafi), stands over a bed where she lays with another man. We see the pain and sorrow in David’s face as he slowly lifts a revolver and points it at each of them in turn, the pain apparent in his face. Unable to complete the act, David quietly sneaks out of the house and jogs down the street to his father’s home, where he is staying during the separation.
It’s an alarming opening scene, but starting the film in this way primes the audience for an explosion of violence, and as The Killing of Two Lovers plods on, David inches closer and closer to regrettable acts while the audience can’t help but imagine what is yet to come. Every piece of this film, from Clayne Crawford’s superb acting as David, to the long dynamic takes, to the non-diegetic sound design of a distorted revolver clicking and firing as David goes about his day clearly thinking of his wife and the man that is slowly replacing him, lead us closer and closer to impending doom–either of a marriage or of a human life.
Machoian’s direction is deliberate and inspired with long takes of intense moments that never break away from their subject in order to show an expected reaction. For example, in one scene David, who used to front a punk band at one point in time, reveals to Nikki that he has written a song that he wants to sing for her. After some initial hesitancy, David eventually begins to sing, and while the obvious choice would be to show Nikki’s reaction to the song (a heartfelt ballad all about how he messed up and wants her back), Machoian keeps us focused on David. It’s risky direction that could potentially start to feel flat, especially considering how many long takes this film utilizes, but Machoian takes extra care to make each of these long takes feel real and alive in their own way, whether through different settings, framing, or movement.
It’s a story told with an intense sense of care and love for the members of the family: David, Niki, and their four children. Each of them is affected in their own way by the separation, but Machoian cleverly keeps the camera and the story focused around David. As the details of Niki’s new relationship with another man, Derek, slowly begin to unfold, Machoian sends us down the spiral with David as he learns piece by piece how deep things go between Niki and Derek and struggles to deal with that reality.
A film this quiet and this subdued requires a skillful hand directing and the right touch from its lead performances. Crawford and Moafi bring a raw sense of realness to their roles. Their relationship feels both vulnerable and calloused and the scenes where the two of them share the screen crackles with how well the two play off each other’s acting. And as the film reaches its climax, the two really shine. It’s the type of film that makes you excited to see what those involved do next because there’s a lot of talent on display here.
Sign me up for the next Robert Machoian feature.
RATING: B
‘THE KILLING OF TWO LOVERS’ is in theaters and on-demand May 14th, 2021
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