| Oh, Hi! | |
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| Directed by | Sophie Brooks |
| Screenplay by | Sophie Brooks |
| Story by |
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| Produced by |
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| Starring |
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| Music by | Steven Price |
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Running time | 94 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Oh, Hi! is a 2025 American romantic comedy film directed by Sophie Brooks and co-written with Molly Gordon. Starring Gordon, Logan Lerman, Geraldine Viswanathan, and John Reynolds, the film centers on a newly married couple (Gordon and Lerman) who go on a weekend road trip that takes an unexpected turn.
The film had its world premiere at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival on January 26, 2025.
Iris and Isaac, a newly married couple, go on a weekend road trip, but things turned out unexpectedly. [1] [2]
After her first feature The Boy Downstairs (2017), screenwriter Sophie Brooks initially planned to produce a second feature the following year, but it ultimately took her four and a half years to develop the screenplay. [5] In March 2020, her agent asked her to write something that could be filmed during the COVID-19 pandemic, [3] and she collaborated on the screenplay with Molly Gordon, a friend of six years who was also stuck in Los Angeles with her during the pandemic. [5] The two came up with the story idea that eventually became Oh, Hi! over a weekend, and Brooks completed the screenplay in two and a half weeks. [3] [6] Gordon, credited as a producer and co-writer, [3] [6] along with Brooks's brother and film producer David Brooks, helped refine the screenplay. [5] Brooks wrote the screenplay with Gordon and John Reynolds in mind. [6] In August 2024, the film was announced to be in production, featuring Gordon, Reynolds, Logan Lerman, and Geraldine Viswanathan in lead roles. [4]
Principal photography was initially scheduled to begin in 2021, [6] but was postponed to August 2024 in New York City. [4] Filming continued through September, [7] spanning for 21 days and wrapping up on 13 September. [5] The film's score was composed by Steven Price. [8]
The film had its world premiere at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival on January 26, 2025. [5] [9]
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes , 71% of 14 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6.5/10. Metacritic , which uses a weighted average , assigned the film a score of 56 out of 100, based on 5 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.
Drew Taylor of TheWrap described Oh, Hi as an "endlessly charming romantic comedy" that cleverly subverts cabin-in-the-woods clichés, featuring standout performances from Molly Gordon and Logan Lerman while balancing humor with genuine emotional depth in a way that feels both "refreshing" and "invigorating" with a "wholly unforgettable" final shot. [10] Ross Bonaime of Collider gave the film a score of 7/10, describing it as a "clever mixture of love and misery" that skillfully balances humor and absurdity, with Gordon's "fantastic" performance making it "consistently entertaining and unexpected" despite the plot's illogical direction. [11]
Tomris Laffly of Variety found Oh, Hi! to have an "intriguing setup" that begins strongly with humor and chemistry between Molly Gordon and Logan Lerman, but ultimately loses its way as the plot becomes "frustrating" and characters make "incomprehensible decisions", resulting in a disappointing experience that remains "oddly watchable", largely due to the "talented cast", especially Gordon's performance. [12] Benjamin Lee of The Guardian gave the film 2/5 stars, noting that while it has a "clever setup" that initially explores the complexities of a romantic relationship, it ultimately devolves into an exaggerated farce, losing its emotional depth and character nuance, especially for Gordon's character, rendering it "goofy and hard to buy". [13]
Jourdain Searles of The Hollywood Reporter considered the film as a refreshing take on the rom-com genre, also praising its dark humor and emotional depth through the chemistry between Molly Gordon and Logan Lerman, while noting its loss of narrative focus midway but ultimately delivering a "surprising commentary" on millennial romantic anxieties through its "playful writing and game cast". [14] Robert Daniels of RogerEbert.com provided a negative review, noting that Gordon and Lerman have "no hint of a spark", which "significantly diminishes" the believability and intrigue of their relationship, while failing to explore anxieties and obsession in depth, ultimately rendering the film's attempts at humor and emotional depth ineffective. [15]