There is a certain horror story that begins with a knock on the door.
A stranger is standing on your doorstep, waiting to be invited in. And you invite him into your home, which makes you at least partly to blame for what happens next, when your visitor turns out to be some kind of monster making some kind of monstrous proposal. A vampire who seduces with immortality, a devil who is ready to fulfill your darkest desires for a price.
Or perhaps He actually this is she: A sexy polyamorous therapist who skillfully applies a little pressure to every existing crack in the foundation of your marriage. . . then steps back, grinning as he watches everything fall apart.
This last scenario is a premise InvitationOlivia Wilde’s new comedy. Now in theaters, Wilde stars alongside Seth Rogen, Penelope Cruz and Edward Norton as four San Franciscans who throw the world’s worst dinner party. Not the one where someone is killed, but, worse, the one where murder would be a welcome event, given how socially awkward and sexually fraught the dynamic is – and that to tequila comes out.