13. The Overnight

13. THE OVERNIGHT

Director: Patrick Brice

Release date: August 1, 2015 (Melbourne International Film Festival)

The year’s sexiest comedy is also one of the funniest. Conservative couple Alex (Adam Scott) and Emily (Taylor Schilling) have just moved to Los Angeles. At a local park their son befriends a boy. Soon Alex and Emily meet the boy’s father, outgoing yuppie Kurt (Jason Schwartzman). The overly friendly Kurt invites them to have dinner at his home. Keen to meet new people and break out of their mundane cycle, the Alex and Emily accept. At dinner they meet Kurt’s French partner Charlotte (Judith Godrèche). When the children get sleepy, Kurt suggests they sleep upstairs while the parents continue the evening’s festivities.

From here The Overnight unwinds into an unpredictable and laugh-out-loud funny exploration of adult relationships and sexuality. The two couples smoke pot and drink booze, and slowly Alex and Emily’s inhibitions erode. The dialogue is sharp and playful, and Schwartzman is completely in his element. He’s never been better.

The climax is unforgettable – a punctuation mark in a sleepover you’ll never forget.