The best advice I can give you is don’t read this review. What you need to know is that The One I Love is good and you should definitely go see it. But personally I think your best bet is to go into it as I did — knowing nothing about it. I had the pleasure of going into it blind at a recent Austin screening, which was followed by a Q&A with star Mark Duplass and director Charlie McDowell (who agree with me, by the way).
If you’re still reading, I’ll do the best I can to tell you what you need to know without telling you what you don’t need to know. We open with husband and wife Ethan (Duplass) and Sophie (Elisabeth Moss) at a couples counseling session with a therapist (Ted Danson). Ethan has done Something Big that has ruptured his relationship with Sophie, and they don’t seem to be getting anywhere in their sessions. The therapist recommends a weekend getaway at a lovely retreat, which he claims has helped many of his previous clients. They agree, and the remainder of the movie is about their experience there.
To call The One I Love a romantic comedy is only sort of accurate. It’s certainly funny; it had the theater laughing out loud in many places. But “comedy” conjures up images of broad humor, guffaws, fart jokes, or maybe even smart but sarcastic jibes, and that’s not what’s going on here. The dialogue (much of which is improvised) and the humor are intelligent, but above all normal — Ethan and Sophie are saying things you and I might say if only we had just a little more wit. It’s not going over our heads, nor is it pandering to the lowest common denominator. And of course “romantic comedy” has even more of a stigma — goofy guy and/or girl who are obviously meant to be together overcome a series of ridiculous obstacles and love wins the day. Again, that’s miles away from The One I Love. It’s only a “romantic comedy” in the sense that it is about a couple in a romantic relationship and there are many funny lines. As Mark Duplass put it, it’s a relationship study in which “the wheels come off at minute 20.” The closest recent equivalent I can think of is Obvious Child; they are both films that are different, unexpected, and not insulting to your intelligence.
Beyond that, it’s a think piece for anyone who is, was, or will be in a relationship. What happens when our partner sees the best version of ourselves? Or the less-than-best version? What if we weren’t afraid to ask our partner the questions we really want to ask, or say the things we really want to say to them? Is it worth leaving the reality of your current relationship for the fantasy of a new one? Isn’t that fantasy going to fade to reality eventually? Is anything you do worth it if the end result is bacon? These are questions we all have to answer for ourselves.
Speaking of answering questions, don’t expect Duplass or McDowell to do so for your most pressing questions about The One I Love, at least not in a satisfactory manner. Despite that, theirs was probably the most fun I’ve ever had at a Q&A. Though vague about plot points and other things they prefer to leave to the viewer’s interpretation (even the ending), the duo was happy to dish about the technical and procedural aspects of the film. The initial plot idea was Duplass’, and though starring and producing, he turned the directing reins over to McDowell, noting “I don’t take my shirt off for just anybody.” Though there are similarities to Duplass’ other films, such as the small cast and minimal locations, he felt McDowell brought an “acute visual sense” to the film, noting “my movies don’t look this good.” It’s indeed a beautiful film, with lush color and a gorgeous setting, which is a real place in Ojai, California. In fact, they reverse engineered the script to fit the location once they found it. The score is another win; McDowell was inspired by Danny Bensi and Saunder Jurriaans’ score from Martha Marcy May Marlene, and felt a similar score would work for The One I Love. Other inspirations for the overall tone of the film included Adaptation and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. For casting Sophie, Duplass already knew Moss from their work together on a previous film, and he knew he needed someone who could provide both the “easy breezy rom com” vibe, as well as show a darker side, and believed Moss would fit the bill (she does). There is some effects work, and it’s done seamlessly with a variety of tools, including green screen, motion capture, and body doubles.
In the end, The One I Love is yet another entry into what I can only hope is a trend of intelligent, funny movies about people who seem real. Probably the best compliment I can give it is to say that the audience was abuzz with excitement at the end, and everyone was still talking about it in line at the bathroom afterward.
THE ONE I LOVE opens in Austin on September 5th.
Watch at your own risk: