This is a film that totally sneaks up on you. It starts out as a boring, straight, white, well-off couple goes off to "refresh" their troubled marriage at an idyllic California-looking private retreat. In the end they each willingly choose a Fantasy Image of their partners over their real partner. For Sophie that means choosing a Fantasy Ethan who appears on the surface to be more attentive to her and for Ethan, that means choosing a Fantasy Sophie - a bona fide Stepford who will go along with whatever/whenever/however he wants. The Real Ethan is so clueless, he can not even distinguish between the Fantasy Sophie and his own wife. But of course, it's the real Sophie who gets the short end of the stick - there is no reason to think she won't be betrayed (again)by the Fantasy Ethan (who has betrayed the Fantasy Sophie) in the future and now it is she who is trapped in the Guest House.
Review of The One I Love
