Movie Review - The Overnight

The Overnight **½ (out of 5) (R) An attractive, loving couple (Adam Scott, Taylor Schilling) has just moved to Los Angeles with their young son. They’ve not had time to start building a social life. A chance meeting at a nearby park with another father (Jason Schwartzman) and his boy leads to a dinner invitation for what could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship for the families.

Schwartzman’s wife (Judith Godreche) is equally warm and friendly. Their home is spectacular; their combined interests, accomplishments and charisma are the stuff dreams are made of. After the boys are tucked away in their beds, the evening progresses for the adults. Everything about the hosts seems too wonderful to be true. They must have some dark secrets or hidden agendas. No one could be that perfect, or so unreservedly welcoming to newcomers, even in Hollywood comedies.

Without giving away too much of the plot, suffice it to say that the long evening of getting acquainted dangles aspects of Lewis Carroll’s Through the Looking Glass and a signature dramedy from the late 1960s, Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice. The R rating is for sexual elements, visually and otherwise. The hosts seem to be pushing the intimacy envelope, but their game plan remains elusive. Most of the film has viewers wondering how far will, or should, their sharing go, and what will that mean for any of them beyond the moment? Much is bared - physically and psychologically - throughout the night. The script’s humor is tempered with curiosity about what we don’t know about the hosts’ characters and motivations, which could lie anywhere from ultra-hip to adventurous to Satanic.

The performances are very good all around, teasing the audience as much as each other with vague disconnects between facades and inner truths. It’s like stud poker - the cards everyone sees aren’t the ones that determine who wins. Overall, the film is intriguing, if not compelling, and should prove to be positive career moves for all four principals - especially Scott and Schilling, who are much better known for their TV roles than from feature films. Bigger just might be better. (7/3/15)