The One I Love

THE ONE I LOVE is fresh and eerie and insightful all at once, hard to categorize either as a romance (because much of it is about love) or as a thriller (because it is creepy). Much of the film's charm is attributable to Moss. She grounds the movie in an approachable authenticity, even as she manages to inhabit a role that's both ineffable and earthy. She's a master at subtlety without shorting her portrayal of a woman at a loss on how to make her marriage work, if she even wants to. She's the best part of the film. (Duplass' Ethan doesn't seem as specific as Moss' Sophie; we don't quite know why he makes the choices he does.)

An offbeat script allows The One I Love to straddle different genres with a certain degree of success, taking unpredictable turns while hitting certain milestones that we tend to expect from both relationship dramas and thrillers. Once you give yourself over to the plot's bizarro nature, you're attached to Sophie and Ethan (perhaps more Sophie than Ethan), wondering where this windy road leads. The ending may still leave you with questions, but it is satisfying. And, frankly, disheartening.