'Two Night Stand': Stuck in an awkward hookup

Writer-director Mike Nichols (The Graduate, Carnal Knowledge) is widely recognized as one of the most brilliant and sophisticated observers of America's sexual mores.

It seems the 82-year-old auteur has passed his mantle to his son, Max Nichols, whose directorial debut, Two Night Stand, is a clever, if uneven, romcom about Generation Y's conflicted, paradoxical views of sex and love. Featuring strong dialogue and terrific performances, the film has moments of near-brilliance, but falls apart with a lame, conventional ending.

Miles Teller (Whiplash, Divergent) and Analeigh Tipton (Manhattan Love Story) star as Alec and Megan, New York singles who hook up through a Tinder-like dating site.

There's no ambiguity here: The 20-somethings retire to Alec's bedroom for a one-night stand without strings.

Megan is nervous, insecure. She feels vulnerable and a little lost after graduating college and breaking up with her long-term boyfriend.

Nichols doesn't bother much with setting up Alec's character. The little we learn seems to suffice: Alec is a great guy, even though his Brooklyn apartment is a bit too small for comfort.

After doing the business and catching some shut-eye, the youngsters wake to find to their horror that they're snowed in.

They are forced to spend actual time together - talking.

Awkward at first, the duo gain a level of intimacy with a session of verbal sparring. In a nicely written, if sometimes cringe-inducing segment, they grade each other's sexual performance.

Their second sexual encounter is all the better for it.

Before we know it, the two lovers discover they actually are soulmates, not just hookup buddies. The film, which had maintained a refreshing ironic distance throughout, devolves into the typical middle-of-the-road Hollywood romance.

Despite its flaws, Two Night Stand is a fascinating portrayal of a generation that embraces both a cynical, almost nihilistic view of sex-as-sport and a bourgeois fairy-tale ideal of romantic love.

Directed by Max Nichols. With Miles Teller, Analeigh Tipton, Jessica Szohr. Distributed by Entertainment One.

Running time: 1 hour, 26 mins.

Parent's guide: R (sexual situations, profanity, some drug use).

Playing at: area theaters.EndText

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