The Roses Is a Tone-Deaf Disaster That Misses Every Mark

The Roses

★

The Roses is a remake of the 1989 film War of the Roses, which is based on Warren Adler’s novel by the same name. Domestic violence isn’t really a subject that yields comedic material, and it would be a very fine line to write a successful script for the sake of laughs.

The Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner film sort-of worked, because it was the 1980s, and it leaned more cartoonish slapstick than poignant dark comedy. This film runs off a cliff right away—like when Looney Tunes’ Wile E. Coyote does as he stops mid-air and holds up a sign that says “Yipe!” before plunging a couple hundred feet into a plume of dust.

Benedict Cumberbatch as Theo
© 2025 Searchlight Pictures

We’re expecting a violent battle between a married couple going through a terrible divorce. The violence is supposed to be a metaphor for divorce’s toll, but the effect is tone-deaf and grotesque instead of insightful. The mean things they do and say manifest into actual violence on-screen. But this kind of violence is painfully real, as countless support centers remind us.

The tone is hopelessly out of step—whatever comedy it reaches for lands with a thud.

For argument’s sake, let’s forget the poorly executed concept. There’s no build here, no tightening of the screws—just 90 minutes of petty bickering that fizzles instead of ignites. We’re promised a physical battle that only surfaces in the last few minutes of the film, reaching a conclusion that’s little more than a cheap cop-out.

Olivia Colman as Ivy and Allison Janney as Eleanor
© 2025 Searchlight Pictures

Theo (Benedict Cumberbatch) and Ivy’s (Olivia Colman) marriage unravels after a storm derails one career and supercharges the other—a premise with potential that goes nowhere. Neither handles the success and failure of the other with any poise, understanding or compassion. No wonder Janice (Belinda Bromilow), their marriage counselor, tells them the marriage can’t be saved.

There’s a moment in this film, in the heat of the very brief battle, when Theo tries to defend himself. He pulls out a kitchen knife and throws it at Ivy. The throw is so wild and off target it made me realize that’s the crux of this film. Wildly off base, out of touch and completely misses the mark. I’m not sure where the knife actually landed, but it sure didn’t make it anywhere near a good story.

Andy Samberg as Barry and Benedict Cumberbatch as Theo
© 2025 Searchlight Pictures

Lines of bizarre dialogue come out of nowhere—especially when Andy Samberg’s Barry is on screen. It’s supposed to provide comic relief but comes off as desperate, annoying and completely out of place. This kind of absurd, outlandish comedy works in an Adam Sandler film, not so much in this supposed dark comedy.

The Roses doesn’t know if it’s a drama, thriller, or Saturday Night Live skit—it fails at all three.

I’m thoroughly convinced that Theo would get his ass kicked even if he brought a knife to a fist fight. His character is better suited for menial tasks like taking out the trash. He can start with this film.