The Invite – Review

A remake of a French film, The Invite is packed with funny lines and awkward situations. If you like social situations that make your anxieties spike, perilous dialogue infused with land mines, relatable uncomfortable moments, and cleverly inserted comedic injections this will work. The atmosphere is certainly not one everyone will enjoy or seek out, but the focal point of extreme relationship drama along with developed characters works fairly well for this feature.

Joe (Rogan) sits in an empty concert hall with a million-mile stare on his face and paying attention to virtually nothing. The orchestra in front of him finishes their piece. He didn’t hear it, as he was lost inside his own non-stop thoughts. He gives them virtually no advice, takes his small folding bike, and heads home.

Angela (Wilde) lugs in a gigantic new rug into her apartment, then rushes out for food supplies, and crafts a soufflé. Joe finally gets home, his back aching with the special bike. The bickering begins immediately. Their daughter Maggie is at a sleepover at her friend Sadie’s. Tonight however, the upstairs neighbors are coming over for a dinner event. Angela even told Joe about this yesterday so him being surprised now is a bad start to the evening…

As the duo prepares for their impending company, they scramble to prep, while Joe begs to cancel. Too late. Piña (Cruz) and Hawk (Norton) are at the door. Will the contentious atmosphere turn them off? Nope, they love it, they say while coming inside. That’s the setup, drama, comedy and apprehensions await.

Wilde's double duty of directing and starring are both impressive as usual, and The Invite is well written and very well acted. All of the core characters bring varying personalities and takes on most everything, however their relationships do still feel authentic. It’s not like you wonder why these people are together, but you do see strains, especially for Angela and Joe. Dialogue is the star, and the script does shine with both tricky situations as well as smartly placed humor.

If examinations of relationships and life are your vibe, this one is pretty funny while delivering its uneasy goods. Those who suffer from second-hand embarrassment should probably skip this one since it throws in plenty of angst. That being said… if you can handle that, the comedy is pretty grand at times and by the end there are decent explorations of relationships and sex. I have not seen the French original, but this one is a pretty good version!

“Maybe it’s someone that looks like me?? Or… oh, shit.”