By Mark Fields
Rapid-Fire, Witty Relationship Comedy Leverages Gifts of Talented Cast
The Invite, a laugh-rich comedy about modern adult relationships, offers tremendous promise from the get-go. The cast features Seth Rogen, Olivia Wilde, Edward Norton, and Penelope Cruz, all accomplished screen performers equally capable of invoking laughs and tears. The screenplay was written by Will McCormack and Rashida Jones, both gimlet-eyed observers of contemporary social quirks. And the film is directed by Wilde herself, who has demonstrated in her prior directorial efforts (Don’t Worry Darling and Booksmart) to be a confident manager of pacing and tone. Toss in the timely premise of urban neighbors in conflict and the teasing double-entendre of the movie’s title, and all the groundwork has been laid for a hilarious and potentially thoughtful examination of couples in tension.
I am delighted to report that The Invite fulfills its potential with an abundance of rapid-fire humor and also packs some unexpected emotional punch.
The movie starts simply, setting up a troubled marriage between schlubby depressed Joe (Rogen) and neurotic, frustrated Angela (Wilde). She has impulsively invited their enigmatic upstairs neighbors Hawk and Pina (Norton and Cruz) to a weeknight dinner party, and has spent the day feverishly preparing. Despite Joe’s reluctance, her plan
moves forward, and the gathering commences with the expected yet comical results, a fast-evolving clash of personalities and values that tosses all four characters into unknown, and uncomfortable, territory. There are few things more unwelcome and unsettling than perceptive observations from near-complete strangers.
McCormack and Jones’ screenplay is quite deft in its examination of characters stuck in old, unproductive patterns. But the humor and pathos of the situation are given real potency by the brio of the cast.
Rogen, a master of discomfort and self-deception, is hysterical throughout, and his personal lethargy is comically offset by Wilde’s manic energy. It’s easy to see why their relationship is in crisis as they are badly out of sync. The unconventional lifestyles of Pina and Hawk provide a bracing tonic to the stuck couple, but they suffer from
disconnections of their own. The swirling motivations and clashing values make for an engaging brew of hard-landing jokes and surprising emotional depth, well managed by the steady, focused pacing of Wilde’s direction.
With its almost claustrophobic setting (mostly a compact San Francisco apartment) and talky, overlaid dialogue, The Invite is an unexpected but welcome release for midsummer. It provides a gut-busting yet also touching critique of failed human connection that resonates, especially amidst the rest of the fluffy, largely insubstantial blockbusters filling the cineplex calendar.
Official Trailer
