Based on the 1981 novel The War of the Roses by Warren Adler, The Roses is a new adaptation that moves the action from Washington D.C. to the west coast and from the analog '80s to a modernized world in every sense of the word, from technology (yes, there's AI) to gender roles. Directed by Jay Roach (Bombshell, Trumbo) and written by Tony McNamara (The Favourite, Poor Things), this 21st century version is a confounding bit of cinema as it's nearly impossible to describe 105 minutes of watching people fight as enjoyable...and yet, with Benedict Cumberbatch and Olivia Colman at its center, it's not entirely unpleasant, either.
More than once throughout the film, which centers on the deteriorating marriage of Ivy (Colman) and Theo (Cumberbatch) Rose, I found myself thinking about all the people I know who would very much not enjoy this particular film. Never a good sign. After all, isn't escapism one of the biggest reasons we go to the movies, a reason to forget our own troubles and enjoy the stylized lives of those on the big screen? The Roses offers no such salve, as McNamara's script has its two leads trading insults and barbs that just get more and more harsh as the film goes on. Soon, they're sabotaging each other's livelihoods, threatening to ruin reputations and mutually destroying the gorgeous seaside mansion they've built together. It's tough to watch, even as Roach and company strain to add a touch of humor to the proceedings—namely with the presence of friends Barry and Amy, played by the endearingly kooky Andy Samberg and Kate McKinnon.
The Roses is actually quite nice to look at, at least, taking a page out of Nancy Meyers' playbook for pretty movies. We're given lush seaside views and more than once I envied Colman's bold yet distinctive costumes—Ivy's got style. When, near the beginning of the film, Theo surprises his chef wife Ivy by purchasing an ocean-view restaurant to rehab and make her own (she cheekily names it "We've Got Crabs"), the space transforms into something out of a glossy magazine spread and soon it's a massive hit. Theo's trajectory as an architect is less upward (indeed, the theme of the movie seems to be two people who can never quite get on the same wavelength), with a failed signature project that costs him his job.
There's a brief few scenes in The Roses where the film feels dangerously close to descending into sexist, misogynistic territory as Ivy's career takes off and Theo begins to resent his new role as Mr. Mom, seeing after their twin young children, Roy and Hattie (who annoyingly have American accents? Not even a twinge of their parents' Britishness??). Come to think of it, much of the film lives in this uncomfortable, "where exactly are they going with this?" kind of gray area...and not the good kind. An extended stretch of their marriage (and the film) is spent building their beautiful new home; it's a fresh start for Theo, who needs the project to revamp his image (and revive his sense of self), and an accomplishment for Ivy, now wildly successful with restaurant franchises and money to spare. As they bicker about every little detail, I found myself thinking more about how exhausting and exasperating they both are than whatever character journey the filmmakers were likely hoping we might be interested in joining them on.
The type of dysfunction on display in The Roses was de rigueur in the early '80s, a time when the concepts of couples therapy and self-awareness were not widely adopted. In 2025, as maddening as it is to watch a clueless couple descend into their worst selves, it's helpful that for this version of the story we're at least watching two of England's greatest living actors do the unraveling. Though most of the film is Cumberbatch and Colman going at each other's throats, Theo and Ivy are often holding back—sometimes for the sake of their children, sometimes because neither of them is quite mad enough...yet. Which makes a certain dinner party scene all the more delectable, as these two talented actors are seemingly having the devilish time of their lives saying some of truly the most awful things one could say to someone they purport to love.
A film like The Roses is not the one to head out to on date night (please, please don't do that) or for a light-hearted afternoon at the movies; sure, it's got some laughs here and there, but not nearly as many as the filmmakers may have expected. Are we supposed to laugh as Theo sabotages Ivy's food orders? Chuckle when Ivy sends a lurid, AI-made video to all of Theo's business contacts? The way Roach pieces together the montage scene featuring these dastardly deeds and so many others would lead one to believe so, but all I kept thinking was how Ivy's shareholders would sue him into oblivion, and how Ivy's reputation would suffer for such bullying. Perhaps that level of suspending disbelief just isn't possible in 2025.
The Roses is now in theaters.
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