The Invite review: One of the year’s very best films
Olivia Wilde directed one of my favourite films of 2019, Booksmart, and after a little dip with Don’t Worry Darling, she’s now back on form with The Invite, which is certainly going to be in my top 10 of the year.
An English-language remake of the Spanish film The People Upstairs, The Invite follows Joe (Seth Rogen) and Angela (Wilde), a deeply unhappy couple locked in a loveless marriage. They are forced to confront the state of their relationship when Angela invites their free-spirited upstairs neighbours, Pina (Penelope Cruz) and Hawk (Edward Norton), who have a relatively new, sex-fuelled relationship, over for a dinner party.
It is rare to see a mature adult comedy in the cinema these days. I’m so glad The Invite is getting the theatrical treatment because there is so much going on at all times – overlapping dialogue, revealing facial expressions and body language – that it needs your full attention to be most appreciated. Plus, hearing everybody’s reactions makes it more entertaining, and it’s interesting to hear what different people find funny and relate to (certain lines will hit a nerve for people in longtime relationships).
The Invite, written by Rashida Jones and Will McCormack, is set in one location (a San Francisco apartment), so it purely relies on the strength of the screenplay and the performances. Thankfully, it aces it on all these fronts. The overarching plot is surprising, the character dynamics are exciting and compelling, and the dialogue is rich, juicy and unpredictable. It manages to be funny, heartbreaking, unbearably awkward and brutally honest, often at the same time. I ate it all up as if I’d been starved of strong dialogue!
All four actors are on their A-game. Cruz is the standout as Pina, who is sexy, self-assured and in control, everything Angela is not. Wilde’s Angela is a raw nerve, her face scrunched up with anxiety, trying to put on a happy face for people who see right through it. The fact that Wilde gave that performance and directed the film at the same time is very impressive. While the others have funny moments, Rogen is the comedic engine as the straight-talking voice of reason. He’s the most normal person here and calls out the BS, particularly from Norton’s smooth Hawk.
The Invite, which reminded me of Carnage and Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, is one of the year’s very best. I hope it’s not forgotten by the time awards season comes around, because I’d like to see the screenplay and direction – and maybe Cruz – get recognised.
In cinemas from Friday 3rd July