Despite the immediate negative reception of 2022’s Don’t Worry Darling, it felt like a foolish endeavor to write off Olivia Wilde as a filmmaker. Her brilliant directorial debut, Booksmart, is not the result of an actor-turned-director who got lucky. That film is both deeply thoughtful and emotionally resonant, in addition to being a prime example of how to operate within the familiar lanes of a well-trodden formula at the highest possible level. In many ways, Wilde’s latest film, The Invite, shares many similar qualities to her debut to an exhilarating degree. The Invite proclaims itself as something fresh from the very outset, even if we’ve seen many films of a similar nature. There’s no shortage of chamber pieces grappling with the struggles of marriage or facing the truth of our reality. But what remains shockingly refreshing about The Invite is its total commitment to the blunt nature and jaded manners of its script, while also steadfastly holding its ground as a full-blown comedy. In addition, writers Will McCormack and Rashida Jones pepper a fair amount of twists and turns throughout this effectively real-time dinner party in a way that keeps its audience engaged for the entirety of the runtime. It’s effectively one marvelous, shape-shifting balancing act that never stops delivering on its promise.
The Invite doesn’t begin in the apartment where the remaining 98% of the film will take place. It instead opens with a short prelude and montage during the opening credits. It’s those segments wherein the film perfectly depicts exactly who two of the four central characters are in this film; or at least, their outward facing personas. Joe (Seth Rogen) seems blatantly miserable and distracted, and Angela (Wilde) seems fully put together while running all over town juggling copious errands. She’s in full preparation mode for what turns out to be a dinner party with neighbors (and potentially/hopefully, new friends). It’s a brisk opening that’s effective at conveying something essential about these characters when they’re in isolation. But as soon as Wilde traps this long-married couple, and effectively her audience, into this stunningly lived-in, oversized San Francisco apartment, the magical brilliance and balancing act of The Invite plows full-steam ahead into everything from sexual tension and shocking laughs to sobering reality and grim, painful humanity.
From the very outset of exploring this apartment, The Invite proves itself as one of the best-directed films of the year. Wilde effortlessly transports her audience into Joe and Angela’s apartment with shot compositions that expose these characters for all that they are amongst one another. And yet, at the same time, we are kept at a distance through simply beautiful blocking that takes full advantage of the architecture within. Despite the impending implosion of these characters’ relationship, they are both delivering razor-sharp lines of dialogue at one another that could only ever come from a place of deep knowing. Their lashing out is incisive, and riddled with insecurities and deep-seeded pain and frustrations. Fortunately for the audience, it’s incredibly funny to watch play out. Rogen is making an absolute meal out of his character’s antagonistic mindstate, and Wilde’s neurotic bewilderment makes for the perfect contrast. For neighbors Pina (Penélope Cruz) and Hawk (Edward Norton), being made privy to such private behavior is painfully awkward. And yet, they play it off with a coolness and a polite nonchalance that keeps the audience on edge waiting for this evening to collapse in on itself.
These are all immensely talented performers, and The Invite allows them plenty of space within its potential for something truly special. Each performer is given a ton of runway for so many odd quirks and specific mannerisms that feel as authentic as can be. Yet the very nature of the film invites its audience to question whether or not these characteristics and behaviors are authentic to begin with. Is what we’re seeing the complete truth, or just the outwardly-displaying version of two people who want to give off a chill, “above it all” vibe to potential new friends?
The Invite and its four characters are begging to be interrogated by its audience, as it is ultimately a film about opening yourself up to the truth. We are shown a situation, and through 100 minutes, see characters forced to acknowledge their circumstances and the potentially new reality that comes with such acceptance. Through a series of shenanigans both entertaining and shocking, alongside many comic reveals, The Invite morphs into something far more interesting than just an awkward evening. Its final sequences are shockingly plain-faced for a film that reveled in its quiet flair of directorial flourishes. Where The Invite simmers in its brashness for so long, Wilde and the film’s writers instead leave their audience with a note of wistfulness; it could mean potential rediscovery or the realization that the past is impossible to recapture. It makes for a delightful film that’s tinged with sadness, and in the complex relationship between those two opposing forces comes one of the best films of the year.
The Invite is currently playing in theaters.