Please forgive me for saying the most surprising things about Twinless are twofold: it is unusually funny, with a very clear sense of how people interact in amusing ways with each other, with an equal and equally unusual sense of danger. Most of this centers around the plot twists which must not be spoiled, but a lot of it is due to the core central performances by James Sweeney (who also wrote, directed and helped produce) and Dylan O’Brien. Twinless provides more to mull over than the average movie, but there’s nothing average indeed with how beautifully this excellent movie comes together.
It begins with an unseen but heard car accident on the streets of Portland, Oregon, shortly followed by the funeral where the chief mourners are Rocky (Mr. O’Brien) and his mother Lisa (Lauren Graham). They are burying Rocky’s identical twin brother Roman (also Mr. O’Brien) and Rocky, who’s a little adrift at the moment, decides to stay in his brother’s apartment while handling the death admin. He begins attending a support group for twins who have lost their twin, where he meets Dennis (Mr. Sweeney). Rocky is a former MMA fighter who likes ice hockey and boobs, while Dennis works in PR, has a high level of anxiety and is super gay. Despite their differences they start hanging out, playing video games and grocery shopping together, and it’s clear that spending time as a pair so casually is very healing for them both. But then they go together, dressed as Sims, to a Halloween party thrown by Dennis’ sweet colleague Marcie (Aisling Franciosi making an enormous impression). And suddenly the solid ground starts shifting.
There is an unusual unpredictability in the plot here, starting with not showing the title credits until a good twenty minutes in. At no point could I predict any of the plot twists despite them all being completely believable for what we know of these characters, for which Mr. Sweeney must receive huge congratulations for this intimate knowledge of human nature and human unpredictability. There’s also an unusual kindness throughout – neither Dennis nor Rocky are perfect people, and Roman wasn’t either – by which is meant a sympathy for mistakes, especially for those due to grief. The little scene where Rocky and Lisa have a screaming argument while preparing Christmas dinner, which Marcie and Dennis diligently ignore while playing Jenga, has a snap of lived experience movies don’t often show. Art often imitates other art instead of thinking about what its own characters would do. Mr. Sweeney has seemingly pushed that further to ask if these four specific people would do things that art hasn’t shown before. It’s thrilling.
The low budget is worn lightly and Greg Cotten’s cinematography finds a brightness to the Oregonian setting that its weather doesn’t often allow it in real life. Mr. Sweeney also gives Dennis an unattractive edge of self-pity that he’s desperately trying to hide, which is a bold choice for a part written for oneself. For his part, Mr. O’Brien does superb work with his physicality in ways that also should not be spoiled, but suffice to say his body language and Ein Aldridge Orr’s costumes ensure the twins are always easy to tell apart. The hype around Twinless is entirely justified. Go in without spoilers and allow yourself to be surprised and surprised again.
Twinless is now in theaters in the UK.
Learn more about the film at the official website for the title.
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