When an engaged couple (Zendaya and Robert Pattinson) drunkenly decide to reveal the worst things they have ever done, they discover the fastest method of ruining a wedding that doesn’t involve Mr. Brightside by The Killers.

In an era characterised by the absence of shame and consequences among the political class, it makes sense that we are being drawn to stories where bad things actually happen to bad people. From the Safdie brothers (Uncut Gems, Marty Supreme) to Ruben Östlund (Force Majeure, Triangle of Sadness), directors are mining an uncomfortable vein of stress-comedy to make entertainment from misfortune.

Kristoffer Borgli’s dark comedy The Drama joins those ranks, with a protagonist so smug and shallow that his downfall would be amusing if Borgli had included any amusing elements. Like his previous picture Dream Scenario, it has a strong premise that raises timely themes, but fails to marry these with convincing drama or comedy, using the tried-and-tested trick of vomiting to get out of ending a scene.

Here the opening revelation throws up a juicy moral dilemma, issues around racism and cancel culture, and even Minority Report-style philosophy about the ethical distinction between intentions and actions. It is a film that will have audiences discussing the ideas after the credits have rolled, distinguishing it from movies that either tell you what to think or (more commonly) encourage you not to think at all.

But where 2019’s Luce took a similar premise and explored it through interesting characters and compelling storytelling, nothing in this film feels believable (no one considers counselling for starters), nor does it get weird enough to justify its implausibility. Borgli tries to have his wedding cake and eat it by critiquing the gossipy characters while inviting us to enjoy the scandal of their fallout, but like its central relationship, The Drama is ultimately going nowhere.