Set in a dystopian America, where governmental control and surveillance over its citizens have experienced a significant uptick, authorities have set aside a 12-hour period each year where all crime - including murder - is legal, creating a society-wide experiment in controlled ... <checks notes> ... pardon me... one minute... <shuffles papers> ... looks like I have the wrong movie, my apologies! … where authorities have set aside a 12-hour period each year where pre-marital sex is allowed.
That admittedly hilarious premise sounds like the setup for either a biting piece of dystopian satire or an outrageously raunchy comedy willing to commit to its ridiculous concept.
But no. Instead, One Night Only somehow lands in the least interesting place imaginable: a romantic comedy that's neither particularly romantic nor especially funny. And I’m still trying to figure out why this thing is rated R.
Director Will Gluck has previously shown with Easy A and Friends With Benefits that he understands witty dialogue and modern relationships. Here, however, somebody clearly swapped his screenplay with a first draft and hoped he wouldn’t notice.
Callum Turner (Boys in the Boat) stars as Owen, a recently dumped New York pizza shop owner whose girlfriend (Maya Hawke, “Stranger Things”) happily informs him she'll be spending the annual government-sanctioned "go shack up with whoever you want" holiday with somebody else.
There you have it. Romance officially has a federal holiday, and somehow it's less exciting than filing your taxes.
Across town is Allie (Monica Barbaro, A Complete Unknown), an aspiring singer paying the bills by recording commercial jingles. Like Owen, she's searching for something meaningful on the least meaningful night of the year. What were they thinking?
Fate repeatedly throws the pair together before immediately pulling them apart through an endless parade of increasingly contrived detours involving a city overflowing with aggressively amorous citizens.
The biggest problem with the film is painfully obvious: Turner and Barbaro simply don't generate any believable chemistry. Romantic comedies live or die by whether we want the leads to be together. Think When Harry Met Sally, Serendipity, or even the chaotic energy of Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist. Those films thrived because the central couples create sparks. Sparks that we see and feel. Turner and Barbaro, meanwhile, feel like two people politely and patiently standing in line at the DMV. Every "cute" encounter lands with a shrug instead of butterflies.
I've yet to see Turner deliver a performance that truly clicks. And unfortunately, he doesn't change my opinion here. His Owen spends most of the film reacting rather than driving the story, leaving himself with little opportunity to create an engaging protagonist. Barbaro is certainly charming and sports plenty “Ooo-la-la,” but she can't manufacture chemistry all by herself.
Ironically, Molly Ringwald, yes, that Molly Ringwald, stands out in her brief appearance. Every moment she's on screen reminds me that charisma and charm remain two of the few things Hollywood still can't fake. I’m sure producers are working on a generative A.I. “charisma” module.
What's frustrating here is that there's a genuinely fascinating movie buried somewhere underneath Travis Braun's screenplay. A government that outlaws premarital sex except during one annual 12-hour amnesty? That's a wonderfully absurd dystopian concept. I kept wishing he would lean harder into that authoritarian world, exploring surveillance, thought policing, and the ridiculous logic governments use to justify controlling private lives. But, no. Instead, those ideas remain background decoration while the movie chases repetitive misunderstandings, silly mishaps, and sitcom-level coincidences.
Braun clearly wants to comment on dating apps, modern loneliness, hookup culture, and the growing difficulty of finding authentic human connection. His message—that genuine intimacy matters more than casual encounters—is admirable. Unfortunately, it gets buried beneath endless sight gags that rarely earn a laugh and "sexy" situations that aren't particularly sexy, daring, or even memorable. For a movie centered around the one night everyone supposedly has sex on the brain, there's surprisingly little passion.
In the end, One Night Only wastes a wonderfully bonkers premise on a flat, repetitive rom-com that never commits to being outrageous, romantic, or insightful. And that's the greatest disappointment of all.
MPAA Rating: R.
Runtime: 102 mins
Director: Will Gluck
Writer: Travis Braun
Cast: Callum Turner; Monica Barbaro; Ben Marshall
Genre: Romance | Comedy
Tagline: 12 Hours Can Change Everything
Memorable Movie Quote: "What's your favorite thing about sex?"
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Official Site:
Release Date: August 7, 2026
DVD/Blu-ray Release Date:
Synopsis: Two New Yorkers search for love on the one night of the year when sex is legal.
