The Invitation – Don’t Accept This One

First of all, don’t watch the trailer for The Invitation (the 2022 one, not the 2015 one) before seeing the film as it basically spoil the whole film but that being said, most audiences have already seen it in one form or another. That being said, does the film have anything going for it? The answer to that is it does though audiences have to wait a very long time for it. The only concern is the willingness of audiences to wait for anything noteworthy to happen, assuming they haven’t already tuned it out, only for them to be disappointed once it does. For the most part, this horror film is a merely a mashup of more successful films of the same genre without anything that made those other films successful. While it wants to be Ready or Not and Get Out so bad, it pales in comparison to those films as the result of an incredibly dull story that tries to be a romance, horror, and thriller and fails at each one. Star Nathalie Emmanuel feels like the only one who tried which is a shame as she deserved better.

The Invitation, for those who haven’t seen the aforementioned trailer, is another tale of something that looks good to be true and then is revealed to be something that isn’t. It wouldn’t be much of a film otherwise. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that the story is predictable as audiences will simply be left waiting for that inevitable reveal as the film offers plenty of not-so-subtle hints of such along the way. The story follows an aspiring artist named Evie (Emmanuel) who found herself whisked off her feet by handsome British lord named Walter (Doherty). Already vulnerable and a recent orphan, a DNA test uncovered the affluent British side of her family that she didn’t know she had. Looking for connection and to belong, she went along on a trip to Walter’s mansion for a wedding against her better judgement. Little did she know, there was something else going on here in what will come as a shock to absolutely no one with plenty of lame scares that will come as a surprise to absolutely no one.

An American woman in a predominantly English environment, the film dragged as it saw Evie try to get used to the people and culture as she attempted to fit into her new environment which wasn’t necessarily fond of her to try and make her more endearing. Nevertheless, the feelings of the other wedding guests were insignificant in terms of the actual outcome. Spending so much time building up to something more, one can’t help but be disappointed by what actually happened by the film’s response as it seemed to not know with its ridiculous final act. Pretty much everything that happens before that final act is irrelevant as that final act was when the film finally got interesting. However, that fun would be cut short thus squandering all the work that came before it. Meanwhile, somewhat saving the film is some decent creepy atmosphere work, be it the production design and sound design.

At the end of the day, the best part of The Invitation is Emmanuel’s great performance as Evie as her sheer likability and relatability keeps the film watchable. She’s the only one who provides much in the way of energy in comparison to everyone else as the others appear to be sleepwalking their way through the film. Doherty is indisputably charming but that could only take him so far as Walter. Either way, the horrendous script did not do anyone any favors.

Ultimately, this invitation is not worth accepting.

still courtesy of Sony Pictures

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Keith Noakes

The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.