Twinless is a joyously unconventional, astutely written, directed, and gloriously performed cinematic delight that jettisons predictability in favour of a far more fascinating exploration of grief and loneliness.
The Indian actress and director, Neena Gupta, once said, “Loneliness is always there, it’s a phase that comes and goes, and it is a very difficult phase.” The same could be said of grief. The loss of a loved one, sibling, friend or partner never truly leaves us; it comes and goes like the tide, sometimes taking us by surprise, even if years or decades have gone by. However, while the emotional states of grief and loneliness carry similarities, the behaviours attached can be poles apart.
Grief can cause people to withdraw from the world, as they shrink inward and retreat into themselves. In contrast, loneliness can cause people to become extraverts as they desperately seek the attention of others in the hope that they can alleviate their feelings of separation and segregation. It is within these complex emotional states that writer and director James Sweeney’s stunning and emotionally intelligent second feature, Twinless, finds a powerful and unique voice.
Premiering at Sundance 2025, Twinless initially plays to a conventional beat as we join thirty-something Roman (Dylan O’Brien) and his mum (Lauren Graham) at the funeral of Rocky, Roman’s identical twin brother. Rocky was taken suddenly, and the shock of his departure is clear to see on the faces of everyone gathered around his grave. For Roman, it’s like a part of him died the moment Rocky left the earth. Roman regrets the years since adolescence, when his relationship with Rocky had become more distant, and as he stands greeting mourners he doesn’t know, the pain of that separation feels all the more acute. Rocky was gay, confident, a social butterfly and fiercely intelligent, while Roman always felt the opposite; he felt like he lived in Rocky’s shadow. But now Rocky is gone, and Roman is no longer sure who he is without his brother in the frame.
Seeking healing, Roman stays on in the town his brother called home and finds a support group for those who have suffered the death of their twin. There, he meets Dennis (James Sweeney), who, like him, is grieving the loss of his twin brother. Dennis, like Rocky, is gay, and he exudes a calm, loving and caring aura of understanding, and they soon form an unlikely friendship of support as they tackle their grief together.
The opening twenty minutes of Sweeney’s Twinless hold wonderful moments of darkly comic charm, as we enter what appears to be a buddy movie about the healing power of friendship in the face of grief and loss. But hold onto your hats, because this story has only just begun, and Sweeney is about to throw us a curveball of epic proportions! One that turns the whole story on its head and creates an atmosphere that veers from emotional support to uncomfortable codependency and from comedy to a borderline psychological thriller as two lives become one, before unravelling spectacularly when Dennis’s coworker, played brilliantly by Aisling Franciosi, strikes up a romance with Roman. I’m not one for spoilers; therefore, I’ll stop there. But Twinless is a genuinely original film that is dark, ingenious, funny, emotionally intuitive and surprising in equal measure.
Holding this maze of psychological turmoil together are the exquisite performances of O’Brien, Sweeny and Franciosi. O’Brien is one of the most underrated actors on the circuit today, and here he delivers a career-best performance, not only as Roman but also as the polar opposite yet identical Rocky in a series of flashbacks. Meanwhile, Sweeney dishes up a dramatically delicious performance with more layers than your average mille-feuille. Add Franciosi’s dizzy yet incredibly psychologically astute Marcie and Twinless should be a guaranteed award-winner in the upcoming season. Yet, like many Sundance knockout premieres, its early 2025 arrival will no doubt impact its ability to garner award attention.
Twinless is a joyously unconventional, astutely written, directed, and gloriously performed cinematic delight that jettisons predictability in favour of a far more fascinating exploration of grief and loneliness. It’s a film that isn’t afraid to shine a light on the uncomfortable extremes of human behaviour when faced with trauma, loss, and rejection, while maintaining empathy and emotion through performances that shine with such brightness and authenticity that you can’t take your eyes off the screen. Twinless certainly isn’t identical to any other film out there; it’s a one-of-a-kind.
Twinless is now playing in cinemas across the United States and will screen at the BFI London Film Festival on October 9 and 11.
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