There’s a lovely Beatle-esque song that plays during the opening credits of the new film The Invite. Its bouncy melodic rhythm and lyrics promise a lot of fun ahead and it delivers. The film (directed by and starring Olivia Wilde with a screenplay by Will McCormack and Rashida Jones(!)) goes way beyond just being a cute story full of cutting dialogue between feuding spouses (in this case Olivia Wilde’s Angela and Seth Rogen’s Joe). It turns into one of the frankest and most endearing studies on human relationships and sexuality to come along in ages.
Angela and Joe live in a ritzy apartment that Joe inherited (otherwise it would have been too expensive for the couple to afford). Having been married for several years, they constantly bicker and any love they had for each other has evaporated over time. When Angela invites Pína (Penélope Cruz) and Hawk (Ed Norton), the wild noisy couple from upstairs, down for dinner, what follows is an evening loaded with confessions and surprises.
Olivia Wilde’s direction here is amazing. Despite the fact that 95% of The Invite takes place in an apartment with 4 people, it feels more dynamic than most blockbuster action films. The actors are always moving or doing something interesting, whether it be Olivia’s frequent wide-eyed looks of surprise and nervous tics or Ed Norton’s Zen-like composure and constant beatific smile, which see-saws between charming and creepy throughout the night. He’s like a cult leader without a cult.
Not as compelling but still fun to watch are Penélope Cruz and Seth Rogen. Cruz is her usual sultry self, playing a psychiatrist with a smooth candor, purring psychological analysis in every direction. Any straight man with a pulse would want to spend time on her couch.
Rogen’s acting is sufficient in the serious scenes, but he just can’t escape being the beefy loveable goof that he’s been in movies for the last two decades. To this day, his laugh cracks me up and despite the fact his character’s kind of a jerk here, you just can’t help but like the big palooka.
I’m not going to give away any of the delightful twists and turns of The Invite, it’s best to go in blind, but I love that the film has a non-judgmental view of sex and desire, a laissez-faire attitude towards individual kinks and fulfillment that’s refreshing. It’s startling that such an open-minded film has been released in the midst of this crazy Puritanical time we’re living in, where the so-called “religious conservatives” want to dictate everyone’s gender and forms of sexual expression.
Ultimately, the film is a story about relationships and how life can erode love, chip away at it until it’s only a memory. It’s incredibly hilarious and touching and I hope we get at least 50 more films from Olivia Wilde, who captured the human condition here better than most directors in the last decade.
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