What Critics Are Saying About Seth Rogen's Latest

It's got a simple premise—one couple invites another over for dinner—and four big names as stars: Edward Norton, Olivia Wilde, Seth Rogen, and Penelope Cruz. And with that, The Invite is winning over critics (96%) and audiences (95%) on Rotten Tomatoes. Wilde does double-duty here as the director of the film, which is a remake of the 2020 Spanish movie The People Upstairs. A sampling:

• These four may not seem like they'd mesh, but like "a supergroup, they sync up their own unique performance styles and find a rhythm that makes the disparate parts sound better together," writes David Fear at Rolling Stone. As for Wilde, she seems to finding her stride as a director. Here, "she turned a modern comedy of manners into a minor miracle."

• It manages to be poignant, hilarious, and "a raunchy sex comedy" without nudity or sex, writes Kyle Smith at the Wall Street Journal. "It's also one of the best movies of the year, though it's essentially a play."
• Alissa Wilkinson of the New York Times also sees it as a "sex comedy," though one that, "as it draws toward its close, turns more and more into drama." The film hits some "false notes" along the way, but "it's a romp, rhythmically enjoyable and cleverly directed, with subtle flourishes that build out the characters' quirks and anxieties."
• "At heart it's roughly 100 minutes in the life of an unhappy marriage, examining what happens to that marriage when an unexpected element is introduced," writes Moira Macdonald of the Seattle Times. Fortunately, it's also "an actors' showcase that keeps our interest, even as the story falls away."