The Invite Review: Edward Norton and Penélope Cruz Sparkle in a Darkly Funny Dramedy

In a moviegoing climate where the modestly budgeted indie sensation “Obsession” outpaced the Star Wars-scale spectacle “The Mandalorian and Grogu” at the box office, plenty has been said about the enduring power of theatrical horror. Yet another genre that deserves the same big-screen argument is the old-fashioned comedy. The shared energy that makes a packed audience scream louder during a scary movie can make a joke land harder, too.

That case is convincingly made by “The Invite,” the new comedy-drama from Olivia Wilde, director of the coming-of-age favorite “Booksmart.” The film delivers real laughs while also finding surprising emotional weight as it unfolds. What first appears to be a broad, absurd premise slowly deepens into something stranger, smarter, and unexpectedly affecting, powered by delightfully unhinged work from Edward Norton and Penélope Cruz. At first glance, “The Invite” may seem modest, but it ultimately becomes the kind of literate, grown-up comedy that feels increasingly rare in modern theaters.

So what happens when your relationship feels stuck on autopilot and you decide one bold, unusual gesture might prove there is still some spontaneity left? If you’re Angela (Olivia Wilde), you ask your alluring neighbors Hawk and Piña (Edward Norton and Penélope Cruz) to come over for a sophisticated dinner party. That plan is less thrilling to Seth Rogen’s Joe, whose brief delight at the sight of a beautifully assembled charcuterie board quickly disappears once he understands that the evening comes with complicated social expectations.

Naturally, the gathering does not remain a simple dinner party for long. As the night stretches on, the atmosphere begins to shift, driven by Hawk and Piña’s peculiar fascinations and Angela’s increasingly anxious need to win their approval. She is determined to jolt herself and Joe out of their comfortable routine, and in that respect, she more than accomplishes her mission. Although “The Invite” is very much a comedy, it also hums with psychosexual unease. Angela’s maneuvering around the neighbors — who function as warped mirrors of her and Joe — is loaded with ambiguity, leaving open the question of whether she wants to sleep with them, become them, or both.

“The Invite” is staged with striking closeness, unfolding entirely inside Angela and Joe’s snug apartment and relying on just four performers in conversation for a little over an hour and 40 minutes. If that sounds unusually theatrical, there is a reason: The film traces back to Spanish playwright and director Cesc Gay’s “Sentimental,” which was later adapted into the Spanish-language movie “The People Upstairs.”

With a project as pared down as this, there’s nowhere for the actors to hide. They need to be firing on all cylinders for the film to work. And although these particular four actors might not seem like they would bounce off each other naturally at first glance, they have a remarkable rapport on screen, each finding their moments to shine. At times, it feels like they’re all acting in slightly different versions of the film, but surprisingly, it works. 

Edward Norton and Olivia Wilde lean into the comedic elements of “The Invite” more, with Norton zeroing in on the farcical nature of relationships and Wilde delivering a much broader performance. Penélope Cruz settles into her role with charisma and sex appeal, a fact that Angela hardly fails to notice. (The dynamic between these two very different women is one of the most interesting in the film.) And Seth Rogen, who after his work in “The Fabelmans” is quickly developing a knack for this sort of understated performance, taps into something subtle yet earnest and heartfelt. He in particular mines the depths of his character, producing gems seemingly out of thin air.

If you’re looking for action or perhaps a more traditional sex comedy, “The Invite” might not strike the right chords for you. But as a dramedy that taps into the inherent humor of what it means to be married and the choices we make about whether to grow together or apart in our relationships, it’s an unexpectedly elegant production that makes the most of its four talented performers. In the end, “The Invite” manages to perfectly thread the needle between begging for laughs and finding genuinely honest and authentic moments.

“The Invite” hits theaters on July 10.