‘Twinless’ Review: Two Guys Mourning the Loss of a Twin Connect in an Ingeniously Squirmy and Borderline Inappropriate ‘Bromance’

variety.com:

Peter Debruge Chief Film Critic In James Sweeney’s wise and disarmingly funny second feature, “Twinless,” two men meet in an emotional support group for those who’ve lost an identical sibling.

That seems as good a place as any to talk about codependency, although it’s actually the even more universal subject of loneliness that animates Sweeney’s insightful coping comedy, which premiered on opening night of the Sundance Film Festival.

Sweeney recognizes that some of his laughs could be in poor taste, but isn’t shy about casting himself as a weirdo, when such discomfort can point the way toward deeper truths. “They say there’s nothing worse than losing a child, but maybe there is,” says Lauren Graham, who plays the mother of early-30s brothers Rocky and Roman, both embodied by Dylan O’Brien in an impressive pair of performances so different, it’s hard to imagine the same actor responsible for creating them both.

Her extroverted gay son Rocky dies off-screen in the opening shot, and the uneasy chuckles begin one scene later, at the well-liked young man’s funeral, where mourners break down when they see Roman’s face, since it’s identical to the friend they’ve lost (minus the mustache).