Summary

The Uninvited is a personal, funny, and heartfelt exploration of women at different life stages.
Rose’s interactions with Helen and Lucien provide depth, showcasing care and tenderness absent in other characters.
The film’s cast imbues humor and intensity, with Elizabeth Reaser, Lois Smith, and Walton Goggins delivering nuanced performances.

While coming-of-age stories tend to focus on the growing pains of youth, there’s a lot to be mined from the feelings of being stuck and filled with some regret at middle age. It’s the latter that writer Nadia Conners examines in her astute comedy The Uninvited, which also doubles as her first directorial feature after her 2007 documentary, The 11th Hour.

When an unexpected guest (Lois Smith) shows up to Rose (Elizabeth Reaser) and Sammy’s (Walton Goggins) exclusive Hollywood party, Rose must contend with her life decisions, her career, motherhood, and aging. In a world where older women are discarded, The Uninvited gently and comically grapples with the parts we leave behind and the frustration of moving forward when age becomes a case of societal dismissal.

Rose and Sammy enjoy an idyllic life with love, a Hollywood Hills home, and a curious son. During a party, Sammy assigns unusual significance to it, while Rose juggles preparations amid distractions. The unexpected arrival of Helen, who claims residence there, oscillates between confusion and lucidity.ProsThe Uninvited’s story is personal and groundedThe film is genuinely funny and heartfeltElizabeth Reaser gives a fantastic, layered performanceThe Uninvited’s themes are deep

The Uninvited Is At Its Best When Exploring Women At Different Life Stages

Central to the narrative is the relationship between Rose and Helen, an old woman whose confusion causes her to forget her husband, also named Sammy, is dead and that Rose’s home is no longer hers. Despite wanting to host her party guests, Rose can’t find it in her heart to leave Helen. She takes responsibility for caring for her through Helen’s confusion and moments of clarity. Sammy is less inclined to bother, more concerned with schmoozing with his client (Rufus Sewell) and attempting to snag Lucien (the always busy Pedro Pascal), a theater actor and Rose’s ex-boyfriend, as a client.

Conners is a confident director, bringing together a story that is personal while touching upon issues women face as they age with grace and care.

Rose’s attention oscillates between Helen and Lucien, who still has feelings for her and is on his apology tour of sobriety. There’s still sexual tension between them — Lucien represents a part of Rose’s life that is long gone. It’s not that she wants to go back, but a taste of the thrill is enough, though she’s quickly reminded why she left Lucien to begin with. Conners excels at dialogue, with the film staged like a play; characters move between rooms, but there’s only so many places to go, and the exchanges are what keep the film afloat and alive.

Through Rose’s exchanges with Lucien, Sammy, and Sewell’s Gerald, we get a sense that these men each value Rose in some way, but they’re also dismissive of her contributions, as though her time in the spotlight has faded, and she’s been discarded like nothing more than yesterday’s shiny object. It’s the way their comments are slipped into casual conversation without batting an eye, leaving Rose to react with disappointed disbelief and a shrug. She’s used to it, but it doesn’t make it any less hurtful.

The Uninvited (2024) Director Nadia Conners Release Date March 11, 2024 Writers Nadia Conners Cast Pedro Pascal , Walton Goggins , Rufus Sewell , Elizabeth Reaser , Lois Smith , Eva De Dominici , Kate Comer , Annie Korzen Runtime 97 Minutes

When the film is specifically focused on Rose and Helen, the story builds with depth. Rose can see herself in Helen, and Rose displays care and tenderness when they’re together. To her, Helen isn’t just a random old woman; there’s empathy there where there isn’t from the other characters who interact with her. Throw in Eva De Dominici’s character, an up-and-coming actress who was cast as Rose’s stage character in the movie adaptation of the play, and you’ve got three generations of women at different stages in their lives, each with their futures and pasts staring them in the face.

The Uninvited’s Cast Imbues Humor & Intensity
Writer-director Nadia Conners

The Uninvited is great at digging into the psychological depths of Rose’s experience, and Reaser brings so much nuance to the role, expressing her character’s frustration, wit, and remorse, longing, and care while balancing a gentle demeanor with biting humor. Reaser portrays Rose as a woman who’s good at holding everything together, but whose cracks begin to show under pressure. After all, there’s only so much someone can keep inside before they explode with unexpressed emotion. Meanwhile, Smith is excellent as Helen — she’s charming and funny, but also filled with sorrow.

Goggins is wonderful in his role as Sammy, and the film also showcases the ways in which age affects men, as Sammy is in the midst of his own midlife crisis, desperately attempting to pave a new way for himself in a plunging career he’s trying to hold together. At the same time, Sammy has trouble decentering himself, which causes some friction with Rose. Goggins, Conners’ real-life husband, is fantastic at making us sympathize with Sammy while simultaneously disappointing us with certain actions. Sewell and Pascal, who is suave and deceptive as Lucien, are reliably good in their roles.

The Uninvited
is great at digging into the psychological depths of Rose’s experience, and Reaser brings so much nuance to the role, expressing her character’s frustration, wit, and remorse, longing, and care while balancing a gentle demeanor with biting humor.

All told, The Uninvited may be sumptuous in its presentation of Hollywood, but when it gets down to the nitty-gritty of Rose’s life and feelings, the comedy soars. The dialogue-driven movie is genuinely funny and heartfelt, rarely, if ever, losing its momentum from start to finish. Conners is a confident director, bringing together a story that is personal while touching upon issues women face as they age with grace and care.

The Uninvited
premiered during the 2024 SXSW Film & TV Festival.