‘Oh, Hi!’ Review: Logan Lerman is Shirtless While Molly Gordon Shines in Entertaining, Hilarious Screwball Comedy [B] | Tribeca

Romantic destination getaways are an undoubtedly bold move that can make or break any new relationship. Even during the happy-go-lucky honeymoon phase, they’re bound to simulate a pressure cooker not unlike a season of Survivor crammed into a few days. But good luck even getting to that stage after finding someone who you can trust, seems compatible, has similar relationship goals, doesn’t have commitment issues, and isn’t secretly scrolling the apps for other eligible dates. If you’re lucky, you’ll make a connection like young millennials Iris (Molly Gordon) and Isaac (Logan Lerman) have in Oh, Hi!: one that feels effortless, destined, and like nothing could go wrong…until it does. 

Sophie Brooks’ sophomore film spins the typical romantic comedy into a darkly comic cautionary tale of the pitfalls of miscommunication while dating in the modern era. Trouble immediately strikes during a flash forward as Iris guiltily admits over a phone call, “I did something bad.” The mystery pervades the blissful first act as the lovebirds drive to their idyllic upstate New York country house they’ve rented for the weekend and settle in. Gordon and Lerman’s chemistry is off the charts from the very beginning as they belt along to Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton’s “Islands in the Stream,” a song that seems to perfectly encapsulate their mutual love. Yet, for a four-month-old relationship, little cracks are visible: Iris is jealous of a strawberry farmer flirting with Isaac and Isaac refuses to reveal if he’s ever been heartbroken. A beautiful dinner then precedes their whimsical decision to experiment with light bondage, leaving them vulnerable and elated. But when Iris shares how comforted and thankful she feels, Isaac utters the one thing that would drive anybody mad: he’s not looking for a relationship.

An argument ensues with Iris in tears and Isaac still shackled to the bed, but she becomes convinced after hours of online research and rethinking every happy memory that she can convince him, in just 12 hours, that they’re meant to be together. This Misery-like kidnapping thriller finds infinitely more humorous beats than Iris blatantly wielding a chef’s knife, though she admits she has considered it before. Unfortunately, the longer Isaac is chained to the bed, the more and more restricted the narrative itself becomes. The ways out of the situation are slim and most are quite severe, so the following act loses momentum as if stalling for time. Iris dances and sings and talks endlessly about her childhood and past relationships, leaving Isaac immobile and shirtless, watching the clock tick for nearly the remainder of the film (there could be worse views, that’s for sure). Nonetheless, Iris’ many wooing tactics shape a pivotal leading performance that confirms Molly Gordon’s abundant talents and star quality. Also, with a co-writer credit on the film, she really has become a comedy force to be reckoned with. 

Once we catch up to the opening shot, Max (Geraldine Viswanathan, Drive Away Dolls), Iris’ loyal best friend, arrives with her boyfriend Kenny (John Reynolds, Search Party), Law & Order aficionado, to mediate this absurdly tense situation. Both actors add a generous sprinkle of laughs and help ground the final act’s added chaos as way more forgiving partners that have been together much longer than Iris and Isaac. 

The difference between these “couples” further highlights how dating has become ever more bleak over the past decade or two. New apps advertise novel features (for a fee, of course) yet amount to little more than a few photos and personal facts or quips to grab a swiper’s attention. Isaac is genuinely shocked to hear that Max and Kenny met on Tinder. Meanwhile, he’s fascinated by a book titled “Blindness,” which details a “permanent disease that turns the whole world blind.” Considering how he moves through the dating world, either his pessimism is too strongly rooted in fear of feeling heartbroken again or he’s scared to put blind faith into a relationship over which he doesn’t have full control. Either way, he symbolizes an increasingly common dating trend where excuses favor any semblance of commitment. It also becomes clear that he wants what he can’t have. The easy solution to these dilemmas? Go to therapy. Or simply communicate your feelings, talk through your insecurities, and be honest– especially if a weekend getaway and cooking a gourmet scallops dinner isn’t meant to be as romantic as it sounds. 

As an entertaining, modern rom-com, Oh, Hi! makes for an easy watch with generally low stakes and big laughs. Gordon utilizes her theater background to boldly flaunt her versatile capabilities and prove herself worthy of similarly remarkable leading roles to come. The movie works as much as it does because of Gordon and Lerman’s chemistry, which confidently leans into its screwball elements and keeps your attention even when the plot literally and figuratively corners itself into a master bedroom. So before you find yourself knee-deep in some farcical situation with a new significant other, there’s no harm in reconsidering if “all this love we feel needs no conversation” just to be safe.

Grade: B

Oh, Hi! premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 13 and will be released by Sony Pictures Classic in theaters on July 25.