One Night Only Review

Directed By: Will Gluck
Written By: Travis Braun
Runtime: 102 minutes
MPA Rating: Rated R for sexual material, language, and brief nudity

Monica Barbaro – Allie
Callum Turner – Owen
Maya Hawke – Malika
Molly Ringwald – Linda
LeVar Burton – Rick
King Princess – Jacinta
Okieriete Onaodowan – Tejan
Charlie Gillespie – Ezra Stone
Michelle Hurd – Detective Vanessa Bryan Brown

Anyone But You director Will Gluck takes on a new romantic comedy with a high-concept twist in One Night Only. Strong casting in the movie’s two romantic leads, Owen (Callum Turner) and Allie (Monica Barbaro), elevates parts of the movie. However, a sometimes-clumsy script, lacking in wit and self-awareness, and some rather perfunctory directing choices make this a fairly mundane viewing experience.

One Night Only introduces an intriguing premise. It’s set in a contemporary version of America where sex is only legal between married couples. People’s sexual activities are monitored through biometric chips implanted into their wrists. However, for one night a year, unmarried people are allowed to engage in all the amorous activities that they wish for a period of twelve hours.

Enter pizzeria owner Owen and working singer and music artist Allie. Owen has a long-term girlfriend, Malika (Hawke), whom he was planning to wine and dine for the night before getting together with her. However, Malika reveals she wants to use the night’s opportunity to explore a romantic liaison with someone else who lives in their building, offering Owen her approval to do the same.

Meanwhile, Allie prepares for a night out with her wing woman, Jacinta (Princess), hoping to find some eligible bachelors. Allie, a romantic at heart, hopes to use the designated night to find a meaningful connection and a long-term partner, despite the chance to seek an outlet for sexual gratification,

Eventually, Allie and Owen are put on a collision course with each other, as fate has decreed them as the plot’s one true pairing, and high jinks ensue. The typical rom-com tropes follow.

Barbaro and Turner make for a nice romantic pairing, and they display strong romantic chemistry. Their antics, at least, manage to keep the pace lively and interesting enough for the movie’s relatively brisk runtime.

The cast’s true standouts come in some surprising appearances from cinema’s former teen queen, Molly Ringwald, as Owen’s mother Linda, and a welcome big-screen outing from LeVar Burton as her lover Rick. They don’t have particularly large roles, but they make the absolute most out of their limited screen time, acting almost like sage guides for Owen during his misadventures.

Despite the script’s rather dystopian premise, it’s only a vehicle for the typical rom-com 101 tropes. The idea seems ripe to explore social and relationship satire; yet, that does not appear to be the goal. It results in the premise coming off like a weird rom-com parody sketch stretched out to a feature-length movie.

One Night Only is peppered with a few chuckles and decent jokes. It has its moments, and Turner and Barbaro do well with the material. Travis Braun’s script avoids overly cringe-inducing dialogue, but the script lacks sufficiently desirable levels of wit, charm, and humor. The funniest moments derive from Ringwald and Burton’s characters, who appear sparingly. The other raucous attempts at humor come off as too try-hard.

Additionally, the movie ends on a rather frustrating note that generates feelings of ambivalence over adulation. The ending appears to outright endorse the frighteningly authoritarian premise involving regulation over extramarital coupling. One Night Only follows the traditional rom-com playbook, but it never quite gels with its fantastical dystopian premise.

Where To Watch One Night Only

One Night Only opens in theaters on August 7. Ticket and showtime information can be found on the movie’s website.

5.0

The final score: review Not So Good

The 411

One Night Only features two strong leads and an intriguing dystopian premise. However, Will Gluck's traditional rom-com sensibilities never truly gel with the high-concept setup. Not to mention, the movie's ending creates an underwhelming sense of ambivalence, rather than a resounding, optimistic note. Rom-coms should reward viewers rooting for the main couple to get together in the end and maybe achieve a happily ever after. Instead, the ending creates confusion. But perhaps, rom-com viewers shouldn't think too hard about it and enjoy the typical rom-com high jinks.