The Wrap's review of "Melania": A Tedious, Criminally Shallow Propaganda Puff Piece

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https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/reviews/melania-documentary-review/

‘Melania’ Review: A Tedious, Criminally Shallow Propaganda Puff Piece
The “Rush Hour” director returns with a shameful cinematic suck-up masquerading as a real documentary

William Bibbiani
January 30, 2026 @ 9:17 PM


I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: If you’re doing it right, film criticism is a full-contact sport. Think of us as the defensive line, throwing ourselves in harm’s way to protect our readers from cinematic concussions. And readers, I just took one for the team. Brett Ratner’s tasteless, tedious, criminally shallow propaganda puff piece “Melania” is nearly two hours of self-congratulatory torture. The film records the 20-day build-up to Donald Trump’s second inauguration from the perspective of First Lady Melania Trump, and I have no idea why she was okay with this movie being released, because Brett Ratner couldn’t find the humanity in a funeral.

Literally. He couldn’t find the humanity in a funeral. The film includes footage of President Jimmy Carter’s funeral service and yet it gives no s–ts about Carter as a human being, or a president, or even a corpse. In “Melania,” the entire framework for Carter’s funeral is that it reminds her of her deceased mother, so Carter doesn’t even matter. His death is just a tedious distraction from what she really wants to do. Granted, what she really wants to do is visit a church and light a candle, which seems sympathetic until Ratner hits us with a snazzy live recording of “Amazing Grace,” cued up so the applause hits when Melania lights a wick. Honestly, I don’t know how you could make grief look more performative.

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Then again, Ratner has more chemistry with Melania Trump than her husband. I repeat, Ratner had unprecedented access, and yet he couldn’t find a single interaction between Donald and Melania Trump where it looks like they’re interested in each other. The first time we hear the President’s voice he’s calling to talk about the election results. Melania says she didn’t watch them. Then she stares dead-eyed into the middle-distance while he raves about how amazing he was. Then she hangs up, looking distracted. And this is the documentary that’s supposed to make them look good.

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Although the film ends with a comically large number of chyrons claiming Melania Trump changed the office of the First Lady forever — by doing hitherto unthinkable things like [checks notes] meeting the victims of natural disasters — the film’s laser-focus on fashion suggests that human interest is a side hustle. “Melania” concludes with a glamorous photo shoot in the White House because, according to Brett Ratner’s movie, that’s what the White House turned into: A gaudy two-dimensional backdrop that only exists to feed the ego of its current residents, who claim to care about other people, but spend all their time focusing on how good they look while making those claims.

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[Upthevibe]

1. Kick. N/T