Untitled Home Invasion Romance Review

Untitled Home Invasion Romance attempts a Coen Brothers-esque premise but fails to deliver a screenplay strong enough to make it even a little bit entertaining.

Kevin (Jason Biggs, of American Pie) and his wife, Suzie (Meaghan Rath, of Hawaii Five-0), are on the rocks. As a surprise, Kevin takes Suzie to her family’s old holiday home, a place where she has had a traumatic experience in the past. Kevin asks his friend Ernie (Arturo Castro, of Tron: Ares) to pretend to break into the house so Kevin can fight him off and look like a hero. But when Kevin misses the break-in due to car problems, he arrives home to find that Suzie has fought back with violent consequences. With the crime scene unravelling and secrets about Suzie’s past in this town coming out, Kevin must work to settle the situation and save his marriage.

This is Jason Biggs’ directorial debut, and it certainly shows. There are whole scenes that lack any score when a score would elevate the dialogue, and there are moments in the film where a jolly or dramatic score is not needed to tell you exactly how to feel. Many of the shots feel incredibly bland; even the attempt at an uninterrupted one-shot lacked the energy needed to justify its existence.

It doesn’t help that the screenplay by Joshua Paul Johnson and Jamie Napoli is very poor, lacking even the most serviceable dialogue to move scenes along. The titular home invasion scene is written and acted so weirdly that you almost feel like there’s going to be a big meta-reveal because none of the actors are doing things that a normal person would even possibly do in that scenario. It’s an odd screenplay that adds in some villains late on that seem so unexpected and includes the death of a police officer character that feels pointless and a waste.

At a breezy 85 minutes, this should feel like a short, fun ride, but there are large portions that feel like a slog to get through. None of the characters have much in terms of depth or dimension to them; most just feel like cookie-cutter versions of the jobs that they have: inquisitive police chief, slimy lawyer, stuffy rich woman. Some moments are funny, such as the erectile dysfunction ad that Kevin had been known for as an actor, but a marge majority of the jokes just fall flat. 

The film wants to feel like a Fargo, but it lacks the three-dimensional characters and the twisty story that made that film so brilliant. The third act character twist for Suzie just seems odd and at odds with the character the movie spent so much time building up. Jason Biggs can be commended for going out of his comfort zone and directing the black comedy, but he is let down by the subpar script that is gasping for more depth.

Untitled Home Invasion Romance will be available to watch on digital platforms from January 27, 2026.