From emotional conversations to comedic beats, Olivia Wilde’s most recent release, The Invite (2026), provides a touching message within the four walls of its story. Topics of sex, vulnerability and resentment are all themes that drive the film’s narrative as our four characters are enlisted into a tense dinner party where secrets are unravelled.
Our protagonists are Joe and Angela, played by comedy king Seth Rogen and Wilde herself. The film follows the couple, who are dissatisfied with their marriage and attempt to rectify tensions by hosting a dinner party for their seemingly much happier neighbours, Pina and Hawk, played by Penélope Cruz and Edward Norton. The film’s screenplay was written by Rashida Jones and Will McCormack and is one of several adaptations of the 2020 Spanish film Sentimental.
Olivia Wilde has proved her ability to create stories through character-driven narratives that explore different perspectives. For example, her critically acclaimed teen comedy Booksmart conveyed a clear perspective on teenage friendship and coming of age. Her next release, the popular psychological thriller Don’t Worry Darling explored a female perspective on rejecting social expectations. However, I believe The Invite goes deeper within its narrative of exploring the characters’ perspectives by curating such a simple concept that rejects audiences’ expectations. Wilde uses realism combined with witty humour to explore marital tensions among these four central characters.
What makes The Invite so engaging is Wilde’s confidence in letting the characters speak. Dialogue is the key component that drives this film, the focused cast and single location centre the dialogue as the prominent feature, which immerses the audience and heightens the realism in the characters’ conversations. With a limited cast and location, the film feels more like a stage performance as we watch the characters go from one act to another, slowly breaking down where the tensions lie in their relationships.
Wilde is directing us to have an open mind about what relationships look like. The Invite rejects the modern view of a perfect relationship; it gets into the gritty realism of what long-term partnership can actually look like. As an audience, we can understand the actions of each character, and that’s what makes it so realistic. The film reflects these four characters almost as caricatures of people in a relationship – we don’t have to side with a character to understand them. The characters of Pina and Hawk are a complete contrast to Joe and Angela. The couple can be seen as the turning point for the film’s narrative, as they represent the characteristics that Joe and Angela desire.
Seth Rogen’s persona is the key standout in The Invite. He is the perfect casting to convey such a pitiful husband, a man who has lost all motivation and direction. Rogen has the charisma to make this character entertaining to watch despite their attitude. For example, a good portion of the film’s comedy comes from Rogen’s delivery of snide remarks and facial expressions in response to the conversations his character is involved in. The role highlights Rogen’s ability to use his comedic persona to convey a more layered emotional, but still humour-filled performance.
As a viewer, the film is so engaging because of the conversations, not just the ones within the film but the ones that audiences can have after viewing. For example, my flatmate and I had varying points to take away from the film’s final message. Films that end in such striking ways are always the most talked about, and that’s why The Invite is such a great film to discuss and debate. Its ending refuses to offer an easy answer on what happens when love can’t overcome everything else.
Go into this film open-minded; despite its evident comedy, its focus is on exploring realism within long-term relationships. The film can be seen as a warning to the audience to recognise when dissatisfaction turns a relationship sour. However, The Invite reflects the idea of how you choose to hold yourself in a relationship, which impacts the quality of a relationship. By choosing to stay within an unhappy marriage, over facing vulnerability can not only impact the marriage but also yourself – I believe this is the truthful image Wilde paints for us as viewers. Wilde does an impressive job in creating enjoyable characters to watch despite the uncomfortable environment that they have been placed in.
Rating: 4 ½ / 5 Stars
Another article you might like – https://thebadgeronline.com/2026/05/about-time-romantic-romp-or-shamelessly-sinister/
