Tag Archives: The One I Love (2014)

The One I Love (2014) a (mildly) belated review

Some films defy easy classification.

The One I Love is one of those films.  When all is said and done, how exactly does one describe this work?

A romance?  At its heart, this is the best general description of the work.  But it’s so much more than that.  It’s also a work of science fiction.  It’s also got elements of horror and suspense (though the film is far from shocking or super tense).

Intrigued?  Then read on!

The One I Love starts out with strained married couple Ethan (Mark Duplass) and Sophie (Elisabeth Moss) attending a marital counselling session overseen by a therapist (Ted Danson in a small cameo role).  It is clear from the session that things are going very badly for the couple and that their marriage has devolved into bitterness and barely contained contempt for each other.

The therapist tries some things with them but it is clear nothing he does works.  The therapist then pulls a brochure out and hands it to the couple.  The brochure describes a nature retreat.  The therapist tells them it has worked for other couples and maybe it’ll work for them.

The couple heads to the retreat and then…strange things start to happen.

I won’t go into more details than that here (I will offer more SPOILERY thoughts regarding the film’s conclusion after the theatrical trailer below), but suffice to say the couple experiences some very odd things while in the retreat.  Do these events help or hurt their marriage?  You’ll have to see the movie to find out!

The One I Love is yet another wonderful low budget independent film that, as noted before, defies easy classification.  The characters, though only a few, are well rounded and as a viewer I cared for them and their struggles.  I was also fascinated by the plot and, especially, the resolution.

This one is an easy recommendation.

Here’s the trailer, which doesn’t spoil a thing…

Ok, now I’m going to get into…

SPOILERS!!!

 

You have been warned!!!

 

Ok, the movie’s bizarre twist is this: At the retreat, Ethan and Sophie discover that in the retreat’s separate guest house are dopplegangers of each of them.  When Ethan or Sophie goes into the guest house alone, it locks up and does not let the other couple enter.  Once alone and inside that home, Ethan finds a doppleganger of Sophie while when Sophie is inside she finds a doppleganger of Ethan.  Bizarre as this is, it gets even weirder: The dopplegangers appear to be “nicer” versions of each other, and over the course of the movie Sophie in particular is drawn to the guest cabin’s version of Ethan…to the point where she may be losing her love for her actual husband.

The reason I wanted to get into spoilers here is because of the movie’s ending.  After the revelations ultimately come (though all questions are never quite answered), Ethan and Sophie are back home, apparently happy and together.  However, a casual remark makes the audience question whether Ethan has come home with his actual Sophie or the Sophie doppleganger.

I mention this because in the IMDB entries, there are people arguing that point back and forth, that of course Ethan left (accidentally, by the way) with the “other” Sophie while many argue that no, Ethan and his Sophie are together now and the duplicates remain in the retreat.

I believe people are overthinking all this and am on the side of those who believe Ethan took the doppleganger Sophie with him and, as the movie closes, has realized and accepted that fact.  My argument toward this conclusion is simple (and for those who haven’t seen the film will make no sense): Why the mention of the bacon at the end?  What other purpose could it have?

This remark tells you everything you need to know.  It is something personal and trivial that only the “real” Ethan and “real” Sophie know about yet the duplicates do not.

And if that’s the case, the film has an unexpectedly sad conclusion, for the “duplicate” Ethan being stuck with the “real” Sophie is a very depressing thought.  Sophie wanted a man like “that” Ethan, yet toward the end of the film it is obvious the doppleganger Ethan’s entire demeanor was an act designed to free him of the place.  Which means the “real” Sophie is still trapped in a loveless relationship.

A sad, sad thing for her character.