Often the gimmick of an actor playing twins can become all that is discussed with a film. What Twinless does is give Dylan O’Brien the freedom to play twins Rocky and Roman without making that all the film itself is about.
Star James Sweeney also wrote and directed the film and knowing this gives you a lot of insight into how he works as a creative. Dennis (Sweeney) meets Roman at a support group for people who have lost one of their twins. The group is meant to help each other cope with losing their siblings but Dennis and Roman strike up an unlikely friendship together.
Twinless isn’t easy to describe. It is complicated, layered, and unique in more ways than one. What was surprising about Sweeney’s film is that at its core, it is about grief and loneliness. Dennis and Roman get close because Roman is mourning his brother and Dennis is alone and shut off from others. And even in the chaos of Twinless‘ twists and turns, there is a beautiful story within their friendship. And it is all because of Sweeney’s ability to mix humor and humility within his characters and especially within his portrayal of Dennis.
Many are going to go into this movie for the Dylan O’Brien of it all and as they should. He’s incredible as Roman and Rocky and the way he brings these two brothers to life in such different ways is worth praising. But I think that wouldn’t feel nearly as brilliant without Sweeney’s work both on screen and within his script.
Grief is a fickle thing. No one grieves the same and what Twinless does well is show that grief can manifest in different ways, some more sinister than others. Especially in Dennis’ case.
Everyone grieves differently
This is weirdly one of those movies where you can understand even the darker parts of a character. Dennis is far from perfect but he’s not a “villain,” despite not agreeing with his actions. It’d be easy to dismiss him but when you understand a bit of where Dennis is coming from, he’s not so black and white. The same can be said for Roman.
What I love about this movie is that it is truly the definition of a “dark” comedy. The dark parts are really dark but you still find humor in it all. It makes it an emotional watch and one that really shows how incredibly talented Sweeney is as a creative.
This is a story about the lengths we’ll go to feel accepted. Dennis is willing to sacrifice parts of himself to feel wanted and in a twisted way, that’s relatable. But Twinless also doesn’t excuse anyone’s darker actions and I think that makes it a beautiful commentary on being a messy human and working through that.
Twinless might not be what you “think” it is going into it but it is worth the ride and one of the weirdest yet best new movies of this year.
(featured image: Paramount Pictures)
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