Twinless is a film that cleverly plays with audience expectations. Its greatest strength lies in how it constantly repurposes past scenes, shifting tones, introducing twists, and keeping things oddly sweet yet tragic. The best way to describe it is as a mix between the Tom Ripley movies and Dear Evan Hansen. It also features a standout performance from Dylan O’Brien and lightly explores themes of grief, loneliness, and—most intriguingly—codependency between friends.
The story revolves around Roman (O’Brien) and Dennis (played by the film’s director and screenwriter, James Sweeney). The film opens at the funeral of Roman’s identical twin, Rocky. Rocky was the fun one—the charismatic one, the one with a lot of friends. Roman, on the other hand, is quiet, reserved, and slow. Their relationship had drifted apart after Roman discovered Rocky was gay and confronted him about it. Now, at Rocky’s funeral, Roman doesn’t know how to act, especially as his brother’s friends keep approaching him with the same tearful remark: “You look so much like him—it’s surreal.”
Uncertain how to process his grief, Roman joins a support group specifically for twins who have lost their other half. That’s where he meets Dennis, a socially awkward nerd who is also gay. The two form an unlikely friendship, balancing each other out—Roman’s lack of sharpness is countered by Dennis’ social quirks and patient demeanor. From there, the film takes their relationship in unpredictable and often surprising directions.
James Sweeney, who writes, directs, and stars as Dennis, clearly adores this material. Like his previous film (Straight Up), Twinless draws from Sweeney’s own experiences and fascinations (as a child, he was obsessed with the idea of having a twin). His biggest strength as a screenwriter is the way he structures the film’s twists and paces the story, revealing each new layer at just the right moment. He also develops his characters with surprising depth, giving them sharp, natural dialogue. Not all of it works, though—he occasionally seems too enamored with his own ideas, leading some jokes and motifs to overstay their welcome. A co-worker’s personal life quip, for example, or the recurring bit where two characters say opposite things in unison, are funnier in concept than execution. The film also has an odd sense that everything begins only when the movie starts—we don’t always get a clear picture of how the characters arrived at their emotional states, aside from when it’s explicitly stated. Still, the strengths of the character work overshadow these minor shortcomings.
Dylan O’Brien fully inhabits his dual role, capturing both the pain and personality of his characters. He’s never been better. He nails both the comedic and dramatic beats, effortlessly distinguishing between the two twins. As Rocky, he radiates the kind of larger-than-life charisma that makes it easy to see why everyone adored him—yet he also allows for glimpses of vulnerability beneath the surface. As Roman, you can almost see the gears turning in his head, constantly trying to process what’s happening around him while also doing his best not to seem completely clueless. His sweetest moments come when he allows himself to just be, encouraged by Dennis—like when he openly embraces his love for The Sims. Meanwhile, Sweeney isn’t afraid to push the audience away with Dennis, both in the script and his performance. He isn’t interested in making himself too likable, instead crafting a character who clearly needs help, even as we understand the motivations behind his actions. Rounding out the cast, Aisling Franciosi is utterly charming as Dennis’ receptionist co-worker, while Lauren Graham has a standout moment in a later scene with Sweeney.
Visually, the film is simple. Still, Sweeney includes a few clever directorial flourishes, like a well-executed split-screen sequence at a party that effectively highlights the contrast between Roman and Dennis. But what truly makes Twinless work is the dynamic between its well-defined characters.
The film suggests that, in some ways, Roman and Dennis are good for each other—but is Dennis truly the friend Roman needs, even ignoring the big elephant in the room? The film leans a bit too close to answering yes, which is slightly problematic. Despite his less-than-noble intentions, Dennis does help Roman grow. However, in doing so, he fails to give Roman the space that a real friendship requires. The fact that Dennis never truly learns much from this dynamic makes the film veer slightly into Dear Evan Hansen territory in terms of irresponsibility. Dennis is not in a place where he can be a good friend to anyone—he needs help. A stronger acknowledgment of that, either through the film’s narrative or a deeper realization on his part beyond merely recognizing his most glaring missteps, could have added more nuance to the film’s exploration of their relationship.
While this thematic exploration feels somewhat unsatisfying (and the theme of loneliness could have benefited from one or two more scenes), Twinless remains an engaging watch—more for its entertainment value than its depth. It also helps that the film avoids an overly tidy resolution, though, as mentioned, its final scene presents some thematic issues. Still, despite its occasional missteps, Twinless is worth seeing for how effectively it keeps audiences engaged, constantly repurposing its scenes in surprising ways while keeping them guessing. Above all, it thrives on its deeply human, well-acted characters, making for a film that lingers in the mind even if it doesn’t fully land all its ideas.