My wife and I watched Mad Men for several seasons and were enthralled for a while with its sumptuous portrayal of 1960s America. But we stopped when it became clear that it was turning into just another soap opera with characters that are constantly spinning in place because any actual development would damage the existing dynamic and make them dramatically uninteresting. Looking back, the only character to have any meaningful arc was Peggy Olson and since everyone else, especially Don Draper, is pretty much an asshole, the only character audiences can sympathize with.

Prompted partly by curiosity about what the actress Elizabeth Moss could do in a feature film and partly by the knowledge that this is love story with a sci-fi twist, I put The One I Love on our watch list. It was a bit of a risk since it was made by a first-time director Charlie McDowell and its reviews are only mediocre. Unfortunately, despite some interesting ideas the reviews are spot-on and this is definitely a miss.

The premise here is that Moss and co-star Mark Duplass are a troubled couple whose marriage is breaking down. They consult a therapist (played by a white-haired Ted Danson) who recommends a weekend retreat at a very special resort. He swears that every couple he has referred to there has had their relationship fixed and so off they go. Naturally the place turns out to be more special than expected and weird stuff happens.

The Twilight Zone scenario is pretty much the only cool thing in this film. To its credit, the characters acknowledge the strangeness of the situation they find themselves in and their first instinct is to actually run away like any sane person would. I especially liked how Duplass’ character makes an honest attempt at exploring the boundary conditions and logical rules of the phenomenon they encounter. It’s almost like reading rationalist fan-fiction.

Yet this investigatory tone meshes poorly with the much more fascinating focus on what happens to a relationship if we can have idealized versions of our partners. All of the good in effect and none of the bad. The director just doesn’t seem to be able to make up his mind on what his film is about. It doesn’t help that the film doesn’t so much discuss the issue as raise it just long enough so that everyone can see it and then promptly drop it again. I suspect a lack of ideas about how to develop the idea further.

For all that their idyllic retreat looks suitably scenic and pleasant, the film feels uncomfortably claustrophobic. This is exacerbated in the fact that the whole thing is basically just two actors playing off of each other. Moss and Duplass are competent but they’re just not interesting enough or charismatic enough to hold our attention. Contrast this with My Dinner with Andre which had two fantastic performers who could effortlessly do that and more. I am amused that they call out Moss’ acting tics since they are exactly the same mannerisms that she uses for the character of Peggy Olson. Her performance here sure doesn’t leave me impressed by her repertoire.

Overall The One I Love isn’t actively horrible but it is rather forgettable dross. Not recommended at all.