Parents' Guide to

The Invitation

By Jeffrey Anderson, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 17+

Smart, emotional thriller with violence and a creepy cult.

Movie NR 2016 100 minutes
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What's the Story?

Will (Logan Marshall-Green) and Kira (Emayatzy Corinealdi) drive to a dinner party and accidentally run over a coyote, which sends a foreboding chill over the evening. They're headed to the home of Eden (Tammy Blanchard) and David (Michiel Huisman). We learn that Will and Eden once had a son, but that a tragedy took him away. Two years have passed, and Eden has been out of touch with Will and her friends, spending time in Mexico with a kind of cult, learning how to handle her pain. After watching a shocking video about the group's beliefs and practices, Will begins to think that something terribly sinister is afoot, but he can't quite get a handle on what it is. Could his own grief be distorting his reason, or are his dark feelings correct?

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say Not yet rated
Kids say (12):

This shocker of a thriller is an intelligent, atmospheric slow burn that spends its early moments on interactions and emotions, avoiding obvious exposition or setups. Logically, anything can happen. Marshall-Green anchors the first part of the movie with his watchful, soft-spoken performance, dealing with pain and suspicion in equal measure. Will has re-entered his old house for the first time in two years, and flashbacks to time with his son are appropriately heart-rending, placing him perfectly off-balance from the rest of the characters.

Director Karyn Kusama (Girlfight, Aeon Flux, Jennifer's Body) uses the house as a vivid character, with muted lighting and clever staging to subtly highlight conflicts. Two outsiders (played by John Carroll Lynch and Lindsay Burdge) are also ingeniously placed to brilliantly tense effect. A brutal climax upsets the mood ever so slightly, bringing THE INVITATION closer to a standard horror pic, but an eerie coda more than makes up for it.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about The Invitation's violence. How does the movie use it to escalate the plot? What's the impact of media violence on kids?

  • How is sex used in the story? In what scenes does it appear to be connected to love, and in what scenes is it used for something else? Parents, talk to your teens about your own values regarding sex and relationships?

  • What are some of the ways that a person can mourn and deal with the death of a loved one? Can you think of movies that address this topic in other ways?

  • What is a cult? Why are they attractive? Why are they scary?

Movie Details

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