‘Oh, Hi!’ Review: A Twisted Rom-Com About Love, Fear, and Misunderstanding

Iris and Isaac sing along to “Islands in the Stream” as they drive toward what seems like an idyllic vacation spot. Nothing could possibly go wrong, right? When they stop at a roadside stand to buy some fruit, the first hints of tension surface: the woman working there flirts openly with Isaac, and Iris clearly doesn’t love it. Soon after, Isaac—who isn’t exactly a confident driver—has trouble with the car and accidentally wrecks the little stand. Still, nothing feels truly serious. The house they’ve rented is spectacular, with a stunning view, a beautiful river, and everything they could have hoped for. They even stumble upon some sadomasochistic gear in a closet, but shrug it off and leave it there. The only apparent drawback is a somewhat surly neighbor (David Cross), who scolds them for kissing in the river.

You sense that, one way or another, all of this will end up affecting their romantic getaway and complicating things. What’s curious is that—like so many of Sophie Brooks’s narrative choices—none of what usually happens in a dark comedy actually happens here. They have dinner. They talk. They have sex. Yes, the chains eventually come into play, but the real problem turns out to be something else entirely, and it arrives the next morning, when Isaac (Logan Lerman) tells Iris (Molly Gordon) that he doesn’t want a serious, stable and exclusive relationship, as she does. Iris is hurt, annoyed, furious. And since Isaac has fallen asleep chained to the bed, she decides the best course of action is to leave him that way and try to convince him that she’s worth committing to.

Oh, Hi! presents itself as a romantic comedy that gradually darkens, but unlike most films operating in that register, it never fully tips over into action or horror. All the familiar narrative ingredients are there—this exact setup has fueled dozens of thrillers, starting with the template provided by Misery—but the story co-written by Brooks and Gordon doesn’t necessarily drift toward extreme physical violence or outright terror (If that’s what you’re looking for, you can watch Send Help in a theater). Instead, the movie leans into absurdity, discomfort, romantic tension, and, above all, a series of ideas about how relationships are formed, sustained, and derailed.

Eventually, other characters enter the picture (played by John Reynolds and Geraldine Viswanathan, both gifted comedians who inject some genuinely funny moments), and they walk into a situation that’s starting to look uncomfortably like a kidnapping. While Isaac’s only goal is to escape, Iris’s main concern is that he’ll press charges and she’ll end up in prison. Ninety percent of movies would escalate the violence from this point on. Here, although suspense and tension are very much present, the focus remains squarely on relationships: on how a lack of clarity can lead to misunderstandings, and on the idea that a certain degree of violence—physical, but especially emotional—is baked into these kinds of situations.

Viewers expecting an ever-more-bloody escalation may feel that the film pulls its punches or fails to fully exploit its premise. But what makes Oh, Hi! interesting is precisely that it isn’t cynical, misanthropic, or cruel. Iris may be doing something unhinged by keeping her partner chained to a bed, but more than anything she wants to save the relationship—or, failing that, avoid going to jail for kidnapping. Isaac, who was never especially committed in the first place, just wants out. The situation they’re trapped in is tense and unsettling, but Brooks resists easy villains and refuses to resolve everything through bloodshed. Less conventionally cinematic as they may be, there are always other ways to deal with problems—and this film understands that very well.