
Sophie Brooks Explores The Ties That Bind In Oh, Hi!
Film Reviews
Sundance Film Review: Oh, Hi!
Director: Sophie Brooks
Cliffbrook Films, Watermark Media
Premiere: 01.26
The moment of realization that the person you’re with has a different idea of your relationship and where it’s heading is something that many have encountered, some of us more than once. Oh, Hi! presents a hilariously extreme version of this nearly universal experience.
Iris (Molly Gordon, Theater Camp) and Isaac (Logan Lerman, The Perks of Being A Wallflower, Hunters) are on the road escaping to a farmhouse for a romantic weekend. The chemistry and affection — and friskiness — between these two is abundantly on display as they sing along to Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers duets on the radio and buy strawberries from a local fruit stand. These two seem so synchronized that the closest thing to tension comes in Iris’s insistence that the place they are headed to is called “Oh, Hi” while Isaac is certain that the name of the town is “High,” but even this disagreement is cute and playful banter. When they get to the farmhouse, they discover a stash of BDSM gear, and a playful experiment leads to Isaac being chained to the bed. After they’ve had sex, Iris learns that while she thought of them as a couple, Isaac doesn’t see them as exclusive, nor is he looking for a committed relationship. Hurt and impulsive, she refuses to unchain him, demanding 12 hours to change his mind. As she googles ways to win him over and eventually calls her friend Max (Geraldine Viswanathan, Drive Away Dolls) who shows up to support Iris, the ideal weekend unravels into an intense experience. Issues of love, control and commitment come front and center in the most off-the-wall “we need to talk about us” moment in relationship history.
Writer-director Sophie Brooks expertly sets up for a cute, if slightly raunchy, rom-com, only to pull the rug out from under us by suddenly throwing up into a brilliantly dark farce. It may seem easy enough to characterize Iris as unhinged, and those of us who have ever been in a relationship where we suddenly see that side of a partner can certainly relate. On the other hand, those of us who have ever thought “The hell you didn’t know how I felt about you” can easily identify with her incredulous frustration and even her desperation to understand a situation, leading her to suddenly change her whole world in an instant. The situation may be ludicrous, yet the underlying feelings on both sides are so valid and relatable that the whole thing becomes an almost profound treatise on the messiness of the dating experience. The smart script is full of delightfully quotable dialogue, and Brooks shows a knack for pacing and staging, despite the confined space of the setting.
Gordon gives a brilliant comedic performance that is as endearing as it is frighteningly manic, and the intense comedic energy she brings to the role is matched only by her unwavering commitment to never undermine the characters’ humanity, no matter how extreme her actions. Lerman is a perennially underrated actor, and — especially considering the fact that he spends the vast majority of the film chained to a bed — he gives a remarkably energetic and even highly physical performance. Viswanathan has made far weaker films highly watchable through her charming presence, and she’s a hoot as the ride-or-die bestie, as is John Reynolds (Search Party, Horse Girl) as her unflappably chill boyfriend, Kenny.
Oh, Hi! may not be for all tastes, but it’s a smart and unpredictable collision between 500 Days of Summer and Misery that is a surprisingly honest yet deeply insane breath of fresh air. This may be the best relationship comedy I’ve ever seen, and it’s earned a highly enthusiastic and gleeful recommendation from me. I love this film, and I’m going to shout its praises from the rooftops.
Now, will someone please untie me? —Patrick Gibbs
Read more of SLUG’s coverage of the 2025 Sundance Film Festival.