Critics Savage Amazon’s $75 Million Melania Trump Documentary as “Abomination”

Amazon MGM Studios’ high-profile documentary about former first lady Melania Trump has been met with an unprecedented wave of negative reviews, raising questions about the streaming giant’s $75 million investment in the project.

The documentary, simply titled “Melania,” has achieved the dubious distinction of scoring just 6 out of 100 on review aggregator Metacritic, a rating that officially qualifies as “overwhelming dislike” on the platform’s scale. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film fares no better, currently holding a dismal 6% approval rating, indicating that 94% of professional critics have panned the production.

Amazon MGM Studios reportedly paid $40 million to acquire the documentary and allocated an additional $35 million for marketing efforts. Industry analysts now question whether this substantial financial commitment will yield returns, given the overwhelmingly negative critical reception.

The Independent’s Nick Hilton delivered one of the most cutting assessments, describing the former first lady as “a preening, scowling void of pure nothingness” who leads a “vulgar, gilded lifestyle.” Hilton suggested the documentary fails even as propaganda, predicting it will likely be remembered as “a striking artifact… of a time when Americans willingly subordinated themselves to a political and economic oligopoly.”

Xan Brooks of The Guardian was equally dismissive, calling the film “dispiriting, deadly and unrevealing” and questioning whether it even qualifies as a documentary. “It’s one of those rare, unicorn films that doesn’t have a single redeeming quality,” Brooks wrote, describing it as “an elaborate piece of designer taxidermy, horribly overpriced and ice-cold to the touch and proffered like a medieval tribute to placate the greedy king on his throne.”

The Irish Times’ Donald Clarke drew unflattering comparisons to Nazi propaganda films, sarcastically dubbing the documentary “Triumph of the Dull” while noting it “appears keener on inducing narcolepsy in its viewers than energizing them into massed marching.”

Variety’s chief film critic Owen Gleiberman highlighted the documentary’s complete lack of dramatic tension or narrative purpose, describing it as suffering from “staggering inertia.” He wrote that the film “feels like it’s been stitched together out of the most innocuous outtakes from a reality show” and suggested it “should have been called ‘Day of the Living Tradwife.'”

The Hollywood Reporter’s Frank Scheck observed that the documentary inadvertently reveals Melania Trump as “an empty vessel” without original thoughts, instead relying on “an endless number of inspirational phrases seemingly cribbed from self-help books.” This assessment echoes broader criticisms that the film fails to provide meaningful insights into its subject.

Perhaps most scathing was Kevin Fallon of the Daily Beast, who characterized “Melania” as “an unbelievable abomination of filmmaking” that reaches “a level of insipid propaganda that almost resists review.” Fallon concluded that the documentary is both “utterly expected” and “utterly pointless.”

The documentary’s failure with critics comes at a time when streaming platforms are increasingly scrutinizing their content investments amid industry-wide belt-tightening. Amazon MGM Studios has recently faced challenges balancing prestigious acquisitions with commercial successes, and industry observers note that high-profile political content carries inherent risks in today’s polarized media landscape.

Despite the critical drubbing, streaming viewership numbers—which Amazon typically does not disclose publicly—will ultimately determine whether the company considers its investment worthwhile. The documentary arrives as former President Donald Trump campaigns for reelection, potentially generating curiosity-driven viewership despite the negative reviews.