The dark romantic comedy Oh, Hi! begins with Iris (Molly Gordon of Booksmart, Theater Camp, The Bear) and Isaac (Logan Lerman of The Perks of Being a Wallflower) heading off to a countryside vacation rental for their first romantic getaway. All is lustful fun until they discover that each has a different perception of what their relationship is and where it is headed. What could have been a merely awkward or hurtful moment precipitates an extreme reaction, and escalates into an absurdly funny situation.
Oh, Hi! is the sophomore feature for writer-director Sophie Brooks. Commitment-averse guys and overthinking gals are common fodder for rom com humor, but Brooks is sharply observant about relationships tending to evolve at different speeds for the participants. Although she has created a broadly funny, over-the-top situation, much of the comedy is character-driven. Brooks has mined the first act and later flashbacks with clever hints about each character’s level of commitment to the relationship and their emotional stability. It’s a smart screenplay.
The success of Oh, Hi! depends on Molly Gordon’s fine performance as a woman whose increasingly unhinged and transgressive behavior is vulnerability-based. Logan Lerman is very good as a guy thinking his way through through a surreal experience with complete helplessness.
Polly Draper (Thirtysomething) is very funny as Iris’ mother, dispensing supportive yet unhelpful advice. Josh Reynolds is hilarious as an uxorious goof who has become entangled in a No Win state of affairs.
I screened Oh, Hi!, which premiered at this year’s Sundance, for the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival. It releases in theaters this weekend.