Review: The Roses – Marriage and the Sweet Taste of Revenge
The Roses is a wickedly sharp marital warfare comedy that transforms domestic dysfunction into high art. Olivia Colman and Benedict Cumberbatch deliver powerhouse performances as a couple whose fairy-tale romance implodes when his architectural career collapses just as her culinary empire takes off. What makes Jay Roach's remake so devastatingly effective is its refusal to pick sides—both spouses are equally sympathetic and monstrous, wielding Tony McNamara's razor-sharp dialogue like weapons forged from shared intimacies. It's a film that dares you to laugh at relationship wreckage while forcing you to confront the uncomfortable truth that the line between passionate love and mutual destruction is terrifyingly thin.
What starts as a cute meet-cute in a London kitchen spirals into absolute chaos involving crab shells, destroyed architectural plans, and some of the most vicious one-liners I’ve heard all year. Jay Roach’s The Roses takes Danny DeVito’s 1989 dark comedy The War of the Roses and gives it a modern spin that hits way too close to home. Watching Olivia Colman and Benedict Cumberbatch tear each other apart on screen, I couldn’t decide whether to laugh or hide behind my popcorn—which is exactly what makes this film so damn good.
When Love Goes Nuclear
Theo (Cumberbatch) is an architect with big dreams, and Ivy (Colman) is a chef who can make magic happen in the kitchen. Their romance starts hot and heavy, full of inside jokes and the kind of chemistry that makes you believe in soulmates. Fast-forward to their life in Northern California: two kids, a beautiful house, and what looks like the perfect marriage. Theo’s working on this massive nautical museum project while Ivy runs her seafood restaurant (brilliantly called “We’ve Got Crabs”). Then everything goes sideways. A literal storm hits, Theo’s museum project collapses spectacularly, and his career basically implodes overnight. Meanwhile, a food critic gets caught in the same storm, stumbles into Ivy’s restaurant, and suddenly she’s the next big thing in the culinary world. Talk about terrible timing. In one night, their entire dynamic flips—he’s unemployed and humiliated, she’s successful and in demand. And that’s when things get ugly.
Colman and Cumberbatch Are Absolutely Ruthless
I’ve always loved both these actors, but seeing them go head-to-head like this? Pure gold. Colman brings this perfect mix of warmth and absolute savagery to Ivy—one minute she’s making you laugh, the next she’s delivering a line that cuts so deep you wince. And Cumberbatch? Who knew he had this kind of comedic timing? He plays Theo as this wounded, prideful mess who’s equally sympathetic and infuriating. The best scenes are when they’re just going at each other with these passive-aggressive dinner conversations or fighting over the stupidest things (there’s this whole subplot about protein shakes that had me dying). You can feel the history between these characters, all the accumulated resentments and inside knowledge they use as weapons.
The Writing Cuts Deep
Tony McNamara wrote this thing, and if you know his work from The Favourite, you know he doesn’t mess around when it comes to brutal dialogue. The insults here aren’t just funny—they’re surgical. These two know exactly where to hit each other where it hurts most. Career insecurities, parenting fears, that voice in your head telling you you’re not good enough—it’s all fair game.
Roach keeps everything moving at just the right pace. There’s this dinner party scene about halfway through that’s basically torture to watch (in the best way). You’re watching this couple self-destruct in front of their friends, and everyone’s just sitting there like, “Should we leave? Should we say something? Should we call someone?” It’s excruciating and hilarious.
The Supporting Cast Brings the Chaos
Andy Samberg plays Theo’s best friend, and he’s perfect as this guy who represents everything Theo thinks he’s above but secretly envies. Kate McKinnon shows up as the overly flirty wife who makes every conversation awkward. The supporting cast isn’t huge, but everyone brings something specific to the table. Even the kids get some great moments—there’s this one scene where the daughter basically calls out both her parents that’s brutal and brilliant.
Not every subplot works perfectly, but honestly, I was too invested in watching Colman and Cumberbatch destroy each other to care much about the minor characters.
No Good Guys Here
Here’s what I love most about this movie—it doesn’t try to make you pick a side. Both Theo and Ivy are completely justified in their anger, and both are also being absolute monsters about it. Just when you start feeling sorry for one of them, they do something so petty and cruel that you’re like, “Nope, never mind.” It’s messy and complicated, just like real relationships.
The movie gets at something really uncomfortable about long-term relationships—how well we know each other’s weak spots, and how tempting it is to use that knowledge when we’re hurt. It’s funny because it’s true, but it’s also kind of horrifying because it’s true. Final Thoughts Look, this is a movie about rich people with beautiful houses fighting over expensive things, so your mileage may vary if that kind of privilege bothers you. But if you can get past that, The Roses is one of the smartest, funniest, most uncomfortable movies about marriage I’ve seen in ages. It made me laugh until my sides hurt, then made me want to call my partner and apologize for every petty fight we’ve ever had.
By the time the credits rolled, I felt like I’d been through an emotional blender—exhausted, entertained, and maybe a little scared of what people are capable of when love goes wrong.
Bottom line: See this movie if you want to laugh, cringe, and maybe examine your own relationship a little too closely. Just maybe don’t see it on a date night.
