What if premarital sex was illegal for 364 days of the year, but the government gave you exactly 12 hours to get it out of your system?
That is the wonderfully bizarre premise of One Night Only, a romantic comedy that takes an already absurd idea and somehow turns it into one of the most refreshingly funny love stories in recent memory.
Set in a version of the US where premarital sex has been banned for the past three years, the film follows Owen , a pizza shop owner, as he prepares for the one night of the year when the mandate is temporarily lifted. But his plans take an unexpected turn when his girlfriend decides she wants to use the night to explore things with someone else and suggests he should do the same.
Enter Allie (Monica Barbaro), a struggling singer whose claim to fame is lending her voice to bizarre advertisement jingles, including ones for medical conditions. The two couldn’t be more different, and yet, over the course of one chaotic night, they keep bumping into each other by complete chance.
Or is it really chance?
From the directors of Anyone But You, One Night Only knows exactly how to keep a romantic comedy moving. Owen and Allie’s connection is allowed to simmer throughout the night, with the film constantly pulling them apart and throwing them back together. The best part? Not once does it feel dragged out.
There is a constant will-they-won’t-they tension between the two, but the screenplay never stretches it to the point of frustration. Instead, every new encounter brings another twist, complication or completely unexpected detour. The humour is where the film truly shines. It is extremely funny without relying on the kind of over-the-top cheesiness that often comes with modern rom-coms. Owen and Allie don’t spend the night delivering dramatic speeches about how perfect the other person is. In fact, their idea of flirting is far more entertaining. She thinks he has elephant ears, while he is convinced her legs simply don’t make sense. And somehow, that works.
The film’s biggest strength is that it never forgets to have fun. The premise itself could have easily become a heavy-handed commentary about sex, relationships or government control, but One Night Only keeps things light without becoming empty. There is always something happening, and the twists and turns genuinely keep you interested in where the night is headed.
And keep an eye out throughout because there are a few familiar faces that will pop up along the way, all of which are slipped into the story without feeling forced or distracting.
What makes work, however, is the chemistry at its centre. Owen and Allie’s romance develops through conversations, arguments, awkward encounters and increasingly ridiculous circumstances. The film lets the audience slowly realise what the two characters are taking their own sweet time figuring out.
That is what makes the romance feel earned. There is no unnecessary melodrama, no painfully cheesy declarations of love and no moment where the film suddenly forgets how its characters behave just to force a romantic ending.
One Night Only is a feel-good rom-com that manages to be romantic without being mushy and funny without trying too hard. With a wildly original premise, sharp dialogue, perfectly timed cameos and enough twists to keep the night interesting, this is the kind of romance that reminds you why the genre can still be so much fun.