What if one messy night turns out to be the best thing that ever happened to you?
Academy Award® nominee Monica Barbaro (A Complete Unknown, Top Gun: Maverick) and BAFTA nominee Callum Turner (Masters of the Air, Fantastic Beasts franchise) star as Allie and Owen, two love-starved strangers who crash into each other in an ever-so-slightly fictionalized New York City on the one night of the year when single people are allowed to have sex.
Recently dumped Owen and hopeful romantic Allie might be the only two singles in the city looking for more than just a quick encounter. They both feel a spark when they meet, but a series of missteps and side quests complicate their night, keeping them apart. As they each race toward and away from each other across the city, they just might discover that the one thing they want most is closer than they think.
Before hitting cinemas in August, Nick L’Barrow spoke with One Night Only‘s director Will Gluck (Anyone But You, Easy A) to celebrate the launch of the film’s trailer and discuss keeping the rom-com alive in cinemas.
Nick: When I was a teenager in the 2010s, I worked at Blockbuster and that led to me discovering Fired Up! and Easy A, which are two comedies I love. I’m curious to know what the video store meant to you? And how did that sense of discovery fuel you as a filmmaker?
Will Gluck: Oh, yeah, I mean, as a kid I was the same as you. I would go to the video store and we’d spend half an hour deciding which video to watch! Most of the time we had no idea what movies we were picking, which was so exciting. And that unfortunately has gone away, right? There’s very few movies that we see where we don’t know anything about, including this movie I just made. There’s no way anyone will go see this in the cinema without knowing what it’s about, which is a bit of a shame.
Nick: What I appreciate about your films, and what it looks like we’re getting more of in One Night Only, is rom-coms about adults, made for adults. You explore the complexities that come with adult romance, and you don’t shy away from the sex and swearing that makes it feel authentic. Is there an excitement and freedom as a filmmaker when you get to explore romance without having to worry about sanitising it down a bit?
WG: I really believe that people want to go to the cinema to see adult themed movies. And I don’t think people necessarily want to see sex, but they want to be able to talk about sex and love. And in theatres, there’s not many opportunities to see these kinds of movies, as you well know. So, I’m holding on to this romance genre tightly within my fingers until I fall off the rocks, because they don’t let us make them anymore. It’s the great thing about being able to see this in a movie theatre – you can bring your friends and your loved ones and watch a movie about adult themes. But more importantly, afterwards, talk about the many questions it brings up.
Nick: It’s been the hot-topic of cinema that the theatrical rom-com is dead, but you really disproved that theory with Anyone But You. What are those key things you’re trying to bring to One Night Only that makes it feel theatrical in nature?
WG: I think the most important thing is that it has to be fun and entertaining. It can’t feel like a homework assignment. It has to feel big. It has to pose questions. It has to be musical. It has to be exciting. And it has to be something that you want to enjoy with other people. That’s the most important thing to me. It’s not necessarily visual effects or superheroes. It’s about wanting to experience something with other people, and immediately talk to them about it. This movie is a big romance set through one night in New York City. Even though it’s funny and deeply romantic, it poses so many questions about, “What if you only had 12 hours to find love?” You have this ticking clock the entire time, so it’s this kind of urgency. And it’s kind of an allegory for dating. Everyone is so connected through phones right now, but we’re so disconnected. So, what if we put all this in real life for a 12 hour period.
Nick: You mentioned New York, which I feel is the spiritual home of the rom-com. What is about New York that serves that romantic feeling so well?
WG: Well, I’m from New York! I grew up there and I think anything can happen in New York. You don’t have to manufacture a reason to meet someone, or run into somebody. It’s just like this island of misfit toys. There’s so many people there trying to figure out who they are, and it’s one of the few cities in America where everyone is kind of forced to live together, which is why it’s the greatest city. No matter what socio economic background, or whoever you are, you all take the subway together. You all walk on the street together. You get to meet so many different people from so many different walks of life. Unfortunately, in this world, and especially in the United States of America, we are so fragmented. But New York just puts everyone together, and nothing else matters.
Nick: In the trailer, we see that Callum Turner’s character works in a pizzeria, which also feels inherently “New York”. But, it also highlights this visceral connection between food and romance…
WG: Oh, absolutely. There’s nothing more sexy than people cooking. Although, I do think that in movies, the romantic thing is always when the guy cooks. Everyone is like, “Oh my god, he can cook.” Which is kind of insane! But, there’s definitely something there. It’s a connection moment, right? If you’re both tasting the same thing, there’s nothing more connected than that.
Nick: I don’t think it’s too controversial to say this – but sex is cool. And if we were restricted to having sex for only one night a year, that would really suck. Outside of that, what is the one thing you love that you would be upset to only be able to do for one night a year?
WG: Make a movie! I mean, it’s basically whatever your passion is, you know? It boils down to what you really love about your passion. Whether it’s sex, whether it’s making a movie – what is your passion really about? And the more you think about it, it’s not the actual act of doing it, but it’s the other stuff around it, which is what this movie is about. It can happen all year around. I think we put too much pressure on specific things, and we kind of have to take a 30,000 feet view of what we really like about that act. And that’s what this movie is about. Is it about sex? Or is it about love?
Nick: That question is explored through the characters that Callum Turner and Monica Barbaro play. I feel like you have a knack of finding actors who have the visceral, electric chemistry, and not just necessarily in a romantic way. What did you see in Callum and Monica that felt like the right spark to tell this story authentically?
WG: You just have to watch and kind of nurture it. Once you meet them and you decide on them, then they spend so much time together in rehearsals, you find that spark they have with each other and you make the movie towards that. These two are incredible actors, incredibly charming people, and I realised quick that it’s very fun watching these two people together.
Thank you so much to Will for his time, and to Universal Pictures for organising the interview. One Night Only is in Australian cinemas August 6.
