Final Rating: 3/5
New romantic dramedy The Threesome puts the bitter in the sweet – but wrapped in a palate of peachy pinks that exudes warmth. And that’s the vibe of the entire film in a nutshell: it’s a surprisingly grounded tale of consequences following a one-off ménage à trois that will last a lifetime, thanks to one singularly potent man in the middle. It’s a film full of love – but the real kind of love we see in our own lives, where otherwise good people commit selfish acts that make sense in the moment but wound others, or the self-righteous sabotage their own happiness by running from past hurts, blissfully unaware of their hypocrisy until things have gone too far.
Yet, at the same time, the dialogue does not quite work the way real people speak – but more the way some of us wish we could, at our most sparkling, after our first glass of Champagne. The fanciful rom-com elements and searing emotional realism don’t necessarily always coalesce into a fully satisfying whole, in terms of tone and viewing experience, but they leave a feast for thought.
Director Chad Hartigan is perhaps best known for the beautifully devastating soft sci-fi romance Little Fish (2020). Although, this movie bears more resemblance to his earlier films Luke and Brie Are on a First Date (2008), which delivers exactly what the name advertises, and Morris from America (2016), about a young would-be rapper in Germany trying to impress his crush – both of which Hartigan also wrote. Romance aside, each film illustrates Hartigan’s interest in painting complete, nuanced portraits of his characters, warts and all – with regular extreme close-ups of their faces to add a touch of uncomfortable extra scrutiny.
Hartigan himself says, “Over the course of my career, I’ve tried to bounce around different genres and stories, but they always seem to retain one common denominator – characters that are simply trying their best to do the right thing.” For this film, he found kismet between that drive and the script of Ethan Ogilby, in his feature-film writing debut. His background is in the production of animation (especially The Simpsons) and true-crime music docs about the darker/more murderous side of music history (Remastered). But to this script he brings an extra personal touch: the fact that his wife works as a labor and delivery nurse surely played into the relative realism of the repeated doctor’s appointments and the whole last act of the movie.
The film is really carried by the weight of its three rising stars: Zoey Deutch (Nouvelle Vague, Zombieland: Double Tap) as Olivia, Jonah Hauer-King (The Little Mermaid, Doctor Who) as Connor, and Ruby Cruz (Bottoms, Willow) as Jenny. Each exciting enough on their own: Deutch, the daughter of Lea Thompson – as this writer just learned from Angie at Route 504 PR – indeed shares her mother’s face and talent. Cruz is a chameleon, bringing something different to every role she turns up in. And did you know that Jonah Hauer-King can also play the guitar, and has a lovely singing voice? Together, this trio of talent softens the edges of sometimes grating characters, and they feel like they could be our friends.
Still, there’s a maudlin touch to it all. (New drinking game: Take a shot every time a single tear falls down one of the characters’ faces.) The greatest sources of levity come from the supporting cast, especially Jaboukie Young-White (The Daily Show, Companion) as the non-throuple’s jokester best friend Greg; Josh Segarra (Abbott Elementary, Friendship) as Kevin, the Mr. Wrong in Olivia’s life; and former SNL staple Julia Sweeney (It’s Pat, Mea Culpa) as Connor’s mom Suzanne. These characters are given only the barest of arcs themselves, but they serve as mirrors telling us truths about the characters in their orbit that those characters would never be able to admit out loud themselves.
Elements of the plot (especially the climax) feel contrived, in the classic way of rom-coms – but with interesting complications that prove this story has something new to bring to the table. I may not walk away with quite the same glow as I do with some of the favorite rom-coms of my heart, but I have a feeling I will be thinking through the social implications of this film’s central situation for a while to come.
Thank you Game Theory Films, Vertical, and Route504 PR for the screener.
