THE INVITATION is beautifully filmed, and that's about the best recommendation I can give it. The overarching problem here is a script that's so poor and uninspired, it underscores every other flaw.
This film is supposed to be scary. Instead it's just boring. I love a good slow burn, but THE INVITATION fails to generate any excitement, and the script is the culprit. At the 45-minute mark, I first checked to see how much time was left on the counter. That's never a good sign.
Even the best efforts of Thomas Doherty dutifully showing off his sculpted physique weren't enough to spark interest, but his earnest dedication to the task is greatly appreciated. Had every actor been as adept and charismatic as he -- even with this strained, substandard screenplay -- it might have helped the movie.
The first hour of THE INVITATION seems interminable, and by the time it attempts to turn itself into an action horror movie, it's too late to recover any momentum. Worse, nothing here makes any sense, and an excess of clumsy exposition midway through isn't the solution, especially when the dialog is nothing special. From the overlong set up to the denoument, the pieces of this puzzle never fit together in a satisfying way. Without spoiling, if one is going to turn convention on its head and break long-established rules, give the audience a fair rationale.
In one of THE INVITATION's more ridiculous moments, the filmmakers "hearken" back to characters from classic literature in a way that totally misapprehends their import and purpose. If one can't hearken better than this, perhaps it's better not to try.
Finally, the filmmakers awkwardly inject a race and class social justice message that's forced and out of place. Unlike other films in which these topics are central and therefore meaningful, here they seem thrown-in, calling attention to themselves in a way that signals desperation to prop up a story that otherwise isn't working. That they include a character who exploits every stereotype of an urban black female played for laughs heightens the impression that the theme is merely an afterthought conceived as a quick fix to an ailing script.
Overall, pretty scenery makes this movie marginally watchable, but you'll need to check your intellect and critical impulses at the door.
This film is supposed to be scary. Instead it's just boring. I love a good slow burn, but THE INVITATION fails to generate any excitement, and the script is the culprit. At the 45-minute mark, I first checked to see how much time was left on the counter. That's never a good sign.
Even the best efforts of Thomas Doherty dutifully showing off his sculpted physique weren't enough to spark interest, but his earnest dedication to the task is greatly appreciated. Had every actor been as adept and charismatic as he -- even with this strained, substandard screenplay -- it might have helped the movie.
The first hour of THE INVITATION seems interminable, and by the time it attempts to turn itself into an action horror movie, it's too late to recover any momentum. Worse, nothing here makes any sense, and an excess of clumsy exposition midway through isn't the solution, especially when the dialog is nothing special. From the overlong set up to the denoument, the pieces of this puzzle never fit together in a satisfying way. Without spoiling, if one is going to turn convention on its head and break long-established rules, give the audience a fair rationale.
In one of THE INVITATION's more ridiculous moments, the filmmakers "hearken" back to characters from classic literature in a way that totally misapprehends their import and purpose. If one can't hearken better than this, perhaps it's better not to try.
Finally, the filmmakers awkwardly inject a race and class social justice message that's forced and out of place. Unlike other films in which these topics are central and therefore meaningful, here they seem thrown-in, calling attention to themselves in a way that signals desperation to prop up a story that otherwise isn't working. That they include a character who exploits every stereotype of an urban black female played for laughs heightens the impression that the theme is merely an afterthought conceived as a quick fix to an ailing script.
Overall, pretty scenery makes this movie marginally watchable, but you'll need to check your intellect and critical impulses at the door.