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When the world shut down due to the COVID pandemic in March of 2020, some of us found ourselves scrambling to manage work and family and trying to find toilet paper. Others, meanwhile, were left with a whole lot of time on their hands. And in Alone Together, one woman ends up spending that time alone…with a stranger.
Alone Together stars writer/director Katie Holmes as June, a New York City food critic who decides to leave town with her boyfriend, John (Derek Luke), and stay at an Airbnb in the country while the city goes into COVID lockdown. As June struggles to get out of the city, John decides to stay behind to care for his parents—and then she arrives at the house only to find that it’s been double-booked. With nowhere else to go, she ends up staying at the house with Charlie (Jim Sturgess), and their awkwardness eventually giving way to friendship.
As constant news broadcasts offer updates on the outside world—on the spread of the virus, the rising numbers, the supply challenges, the political debates—these two strangers create their own unlikely bubble together. What starts out as a painfully awkward arrangement—one that seems just a little too forced—plays out into a situation that’s still fresh in all of our memories. The characters have deep, philosophical discussions about the pandemic and its ramifications on humanity. They spend time outside, taking long walks and going on long bike rides. They write and paint and learn to cook. And, as you might expect, along the way, they connect in a way that they didn’t see coming.
Over the last two years, we’ve all learned a lot about ourselves, our priorities, and the people around us. And as June and Charlie spend this quieter, simpler time together, living at a slower pace, they come to a lot of the same realizations. But while their budding relationship may go from awkward to relaxed in a very short amount of time, the pacing feels as slow as those long, languid days in lockdown. These conversations and scenarios may be realistic, but that doesn’t necessarily make for an interesting film.
Alone Together explores some of those personal insights that many of us gained during the COVID lockdown, but the characters’ story doesn’t always feel natural. It’s a film that will definitely bring back some memories—but it’s not an especially captivating one.
Alone Together arrives in theaters and on demand on July 22, 2022.
Listen to the review on Reel Discovery:
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