‘The Invite’: A Collapsing Marriage Opens the Door to Temptation in Olivia Wilde’s Keen Foursome 

Alci Rengifo

Here is another exploration of the unhappy American middle class couple. In literature and cinema, this tortured coupling used to represent the anxieties of our society. Olivia Wilde’s “The Invite” has few new insights into the perils of being a wedded white citizen of the republic, touching on those classic themes of jealousy, infidelity, dashed dreams, and what happens when you meet people more sexually wild than yourselves. Yet, like with crime films, it is the presence of these elements that keeps this film entertaining. For Wilde, it is a welcome return to a personal kind of filmmaking, clearly stamped with experiences, or at least arguments, the director has surely witnessed or partaken in. 

“The Invite” is also Wilde’s first U.S. remake of a foreign release. The original, “Sentimental,” is a Spanish film directed by Cesc Gay, which was re-titled “The People Upstairs” for English-language markets. Wilde is shooting a screenplay by Will McCormack and Rashida Jones that keeps most of the original premise. It begins with a fight inside a nice apartment. Joe (Seth Rogen) is irritated that he wasn’t aware tonight is when wife Angela (Wilde) invited their upstairs neighbors over for dinner. He is a former band musician now teaching music. She stays at home, wondering about her own worth. Joe has been particularly irritated by the occupants above having sex loud enough to ruin his peace of mind. Then, the neighbors arrive. Pína (Penélope Cruz) and Hawk (Edward Norton) and the complete opposite of Angela and Joe. Pína is a sexologist and Hawk is a retired fireman. They are upfront about noticing that their hosts have been fighting, since it can be heard through the door. When Angela and Joe insist they stay, they have no qualms as two open, understanding progressives. They are indeed so progressive that it turns out the loud lovemaking coming from their apartment is the result of the couple hosting sex parties.

Wilde first proved she can direct memorable characters with her debut, “Booksmart,” a great high school movie about two straight-A besties desperate to make up for years of no rebelling in one night. She followed it with “Don’t Worry Darling,” a clunky sci-fi fable overshadowed by tabloid fodder. One shouldn’t always read too heavily into the plot of a film, but it is hard to ignore how Wilde’s rocky divorce with Jason Sudeikis and public romance with Harry Styles don’t cast light shadows over this material. Rare for an American update, “The Invite” is slightly richer than “Sentimental.” The Spanish film had a less heartbroken view of marriage, depending mostly on the idea of the neighbors as freaks for laughs. Wilde finds plenty of good comedic timing here, but explores more deeply what happens when a relationship starts losing its steam out of sheer tiredness. Certain lines have the meta feel of Wilde commenting on the nature of this very type of movie. When Hawk asks Angela if she and Joe have money, she admits they only own the apartment as an inheritance from Joe’s parents. “Nobody can afford anything right now,” Hawk confirms. Edward Norton also practices his Spanish with Penélope Cruz, playing those couples who communicate in another language what shouldn’t be understood by the other party.

Never do we leave the apartment. All of the drama is confined to these four individuals. Much of “The Invite” works as a comedy of manners in addition to its examination of marriage. Angela panics because Pína has strict dietary restrictions. The couples swap partners to chat and walk around the apartment. Hawk and Angela share a love for rugs, which boosts her confidence since Joe hates the rare rug she basically found while thrifting. For repressed Joe, who is only allowed to smoke his weed in the room where he keeps records, Pína offers some excitement since she loves music too. Inevitably, the sex positive couple will throw the idea out there that the four of them should consider having group sex. Wilde doesn’t go for the cliché of then turning this into a steamy foursome or a marathon of horny teasing. The offer only pushes Joe and Angela to expose even more of what ails their relationship. They share memories of when they first met, back when Joe was in a band, with the sadness of lamenting a happier past. Now he doesn’t listen to Angela and she only feels frustration towards her partner. 

An ensemble like this makes the movie and every actor makes keen choices. Wilde can easily steal a scene but never puts herself at the center of the entire story. She treats Angela and Joe on equal footing, which allows Seth Rogen to again impress with his balance of humor and heartfelt vulnerability. Norton and Cruz are having more fun, Norton being that open type who seems unfazed by anything and Cruz evoking the capacity to deconstruct you after one conversation. Yes, these characters suffer from first world problems. No one in this story complains about money or worries for their future. They are entirely consumed by matters of the heart, which they can afford to. The ending is sly in leaving us wondering if it is meant to be hopeful. The cinematography by Adam Newport-Berra is cold, in the same way the main couple is growing dangerously frigid. Even if you don’t live like Angela and Joe, “The Invite” does a good enough job with the universal truth that building a life with someone else is no easy feat.

“The Invite” releases June 26 in select theaters and expands July 3 nationwide.