Stanley Kubrick said, “There’s not much in a critic showing off how clever he is at writing silly, supercilious gags about something he hates.” And that’s my review about the movie reviews of “Melania,” the behind-the-scenes look at 20 days in the First Lady’s life leading up to the Second Inauguration.
I knew that I had to see this movie when the critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes was 11% fresh, and the audience score clocked in at 99%. Whenever the scores diverge that much, it should tell you that the critics have lost the pulse of the people. Usually, they just ignore films conservatives like; that was the case with Matt Walsh’s hysterical “What Is a Woman?” We were one of the only news sites in the country to review it.
The elite critics are seeing “Melania” only so they can make fun of it and pretend they’re smart because they know Leni Riefenstahl analogies, but they’re not trying to understand the subject or the art; it’s all about them. Their biases. Their hatred. Their politics. This is narcissism masquerading as film criticism. It’s the film reviewer’s equivalent of blowing a whistle in a cop’s face. Obnoxious.
I liked the movie, a lot. And many people on my Facebook page did too. “I really enjoyed it. It’s very sad how the media either bashes her or completely ignores her. She is an asset to our country, and I love that she’s becoming more involved in the second term,” wrote one WRN reader. “She’s our Jackie Kennedy as much as they all hate to acknowledge her. We adore her,” another person added.
“I don’t know what people expected with a documentary, but I had a range of emotion,” wrote another woman. “I cried during her grief experience on the one-year anniversary of her mother’s death. I cried when she consoled a wife of a Hamas kidnap victim. I laughed when she cut loose during the YMCA and when President Trump had cameos. I was angry for her when they broached the subject of safety of her and her husband.”
Meanwhile, the elite snark media were publishing hate reviews that said things like, “It is an important document in the decline of American public life” and making fun of Melania’s face.
We reviewed Walsh’s movie, too, because someone had to do it. And so it is with “Melania.” I don’t give every movie a positive review just because it has conservative themes. There was a terrible Dinesh D’Souza movie called “Vindicating Trump” that came out in 2024 and felt like a couple of “60 Minutes” excerpts lashed together. On the other hand, I also liked “Reagan,” which the critics generally abhorred.
Melania is nothing like the media have portrayed, so it’s not surprising that her movie is nothing like the critics say. She’s a million times warmer. Her media image is aloof, classy, but distant. In the movie, she exudes warmth, grace, elegance, and love of family and country. I’m convinced the latter is the real Melania. The media have really done a number on her. She seems to love helping people and, especially, children. The scenes of her interacting with the hostage’s wife were deeply moving.
She seems very loyal to Trump and her family. She is deeply grieving her mother.
Trump seems to truly respect and admire her. There was a lot of hand-holding between them in this movie. But it didn’t seem forced. He came across as a very serious man with the weight of the world on his shoulders. I have talked to him in person, and he was like he comes across in this movie. Less bombastic. Analytical and charming.
You are reminded how terribly he’s been treated. He comes across as a man who loves this country and who is willing to shoulder the weight of the world to help it.
Melania lives a very formal life, at least what they showed of her. You’ll never see her in sweat pants, at least not on film. And wow, does she pull off a stiletto. She is always dressed formally.
She came across as a very independent figure who is often alone. Her husband is a busy man. The first time you hear him on the phone, he’s gushing about his election victory. Just about the only really personal moment is when they hand him two sodas in the White House after the inaugural balls. Mostly, he’s seen in professional settings like a candlelight dinner or an inaugural planning meeting.
Melania came across as a bit of a solitary figure. But not in a sad way. In the way that she is fine with that and understands the weight of his job. She respects the grandeur of it. Still, she seems a bit lonely, whether it’s watching news coverage of the Pacific Palisades fires by herself or flying on a private plane as she goes back and forth between New York, Mar-a-Lago, and DC, sometimes with the president, and sometimes not.
The movie was shot as if you were seeing her POV. This was really interesting because it gave you a sense of how it would feel to be them, in the motorcade. Great music and visuals abounded. She loves Michael Jackson music.
She travels a lot. You don’t get any major insights about the administration or the issues of the day, though.
She’s beautiful. Taller than I knew. Enigmatic eyes, warm smile. We already knew Barron was tall. I wanted to see more of Barron. The other kids were just present in glimpses.
There are some humorous cameos. Biden looks totally out of it (my God, he was almost the Leader of the Free World again), Kamala looks pissed, Elon made a brief appearance with a woman hanging on him. Brigitte Macron is odd-looking. There is a weird picture of Obama on the White House wall, and a moving painting Jackie Kennedy left in honor of Jack. The living quarters are smaller than you’d expect, and oddly decorated, at least what they show you of them. Trump says good night and walks off down the hall.
The most interesting parts of the movie were seeing what it’s like behind the scenes. What are the living quarters of the White House like…Mar-a-Lago.
They only let you in so far, though, and then shut the door so to speak. It was a peek behind the scenes of their professional lives. Not so much their truly personal ones. I wanted more of that! You don’t see them waking up and brushing their teeth or whatever. In that way, she remains a tad aloof.
You don’t get much of her backstory, just a bit. You see very little of the kids. This is her story. It is more a behind-the-scenes tour than a bio pic. I get that this is a constructed reality. But it made you believe. So it did its job.
Ignore the elite critics. They’re ruining film criticism with their personal politics, just like they’ve ruined late-night talk.
