Netflix’s The Four of Us Review: Experimental Love

The Four of Us aka Du Sie Er & Wir (which means ‘You, She, He & Us), a German drama is now streaming on Netflix. Directed by Florian Gottschick, Nilam Farooq, Paula Kalenberg, Jonas Nay and Louis Nitsche. Florian wrote the screenplay along with Florian Von Bornstädt. The film is in German with English dubbing and subtitles.

The synopsis for Du Sie Er & Wir reads – After their partner swap experiment takes a turn, four friends arrive at a remote beach hut to face the fallout and purge themselves of deeper truths.

Netflix’s The Four of Us Review Contains Mild Spoilers

Two couples, played by Nilam Farooq, Louis Nitsche, Jonas Nay and Paula Kalenberg, decide to swap as partners for 4 weeks. The partner-swap experiment has one big rule – No sex! After 4 weeks, the swapped couples meet again at the beach house to have dinner together and get back to each other. However, one swapped couple broke the ‘no sex’ rule causing drama in everyone’s life.

The Four of Us sounds like an interesting idea on paper, also quite unrealistic. The twists don’t come as a shock, but what the characters go through, how they handle their relationship after the failed experiment is worth looking at. Does sleeping with someone always means being in love with them? The couples also have to find answers to this tricky question.

The German Netflix film ‘The Four of Us’ has a touch of drama, intense emotions, and some comedic relief. One of my most favourite scenes is the ‘Eye Gazing Exercise’ by the couples. We may lie by words or do wrong with our actions, but staring deeply into someone’s eyes will always reveal what’s within.

As both the couples try to handle the big failure of their experiment, they also try to build trust and intimacy back. While sex means crossing all the lines, nothing comes above emotions for them. So will they solve the issues and get back to their real partners or with the swapped ones? You’ll find the answers as the movie ends.

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Coming to what doesn’t work – It’s a story that won’t appeal to everyone. Not all will be accepting of the couple swap story to realise who truly loves whom. Some might say that these couples are toxic and shouldn’t be with each other. But no one is perfect, the characters nor the story. It had every possibility of going wrong as an anti-fidelity plot, but Florian Von Bornstädt and Florian Gottschick had the story in their control.

The Four of Us Review: Final Thoughts

Overall, Du Sie Er & Wir is a fascinating romantic saga. The experiment idea might sound absurd, but the underlying message is heartwarming. If you are a sucker for deep, meaningful relationship dramas with some humour, you should give it a watch at least once.

DU SIE ER & WIR is now streaming on Netflix.

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