My guiltiest pleasure is that I love watching Love is Blind, especially when the drama really heats up. Olivia Wilde’s latest film, The Invite, is a lot funnier, sexier, and smarter than what we see on that show, but there is a familiar feeling of being a voyeur to one of the worst nights of this couple’s marriage.
The minute that Joe (Seth Rogen) walks into his apartment with his wife, Angela (Olivia Wilde), it is clear that this couple is in trouble. But that night they need to shut it down, because Angela has invited over their neighbors Hawk (Edward Norton) and Piña (Penélope Cruz) to get to know them. Angela says they’re cool and she wants to get to know them, and Joe wants to take the opportunity to tell them that their raucous love-making is a little too much at 4 AM. As the night progresses, both couples learn about each other and about themselves.
Like any dinner party with people who don’t know each other well, The Invite takes a minute to find its groove, feeling angry and uncomfortable for a while. But once the house tour is finished and everyone has taken a few hits off a joint and downed a few shots of tequila, the film gets to the business of what it means to really see and communicate with your partner, and it becomes one of the best movies of the year.
Because the film is confined to a relatively small apartment and has only four characters, the cast has to be firing on all cylinders, and that is absolutely what is happening in The Invite. It is incredibly dialogue-heavy with a lot of “that’s not quite how people talk” lines, but it maintains a sense of authenticity, thanks to the beautiful performances of this quartet of actors. There is a lot of talk about “energy” in the movie, and each one brings something genuinely unique to their characters that bounces around, making it impossible to tear your eyes away.
Of course, the more salacious aspect of the story helps to keep your attention as well. But while a foursome is on the table, writers Will McCormack and Rashida Jones do an excellent job of making it somehow both clinical and titillating. The film is wickedly funny, but it also recognizes that sometimes humor is a way to paper over real struggles that exist in relationships. Wilde’s direction, particularly in the final scene, is some of her best work yet.
While there is a lacivious element to The Invite, it is ultimately a movie about communication. The movie starts with Angela asking Joe to reset their night, only for the two to immediately fall into old habits, leaving us to ask if it is possible to reset a relationship that has gone wrong for so long. For some, that may mean looking for new experiences; for others, it might mean remembering what drew you together in the first place. You just have to decide whether or not to accept the invitation.
Rating: 4.5/5
This review originally appeared in The Dominion Post on July 11, 2026.
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