TMS Movie Review: Friendship
(A24 / 5th Season)
Well, this May officially concluded with each of the past month’s movie reviews not working out for me. Andrew DeYoung’s Friendship is a new film where I went in strictly because of the hype. The early reviews and feedback were really good, and the casting was promising. I’ve only seen a few sketches of the film’s lead, Tim Robinson’s cult favorite comedy series “I Think You Should Leave” (2019- ) on Netflix, and found a couple of them funny enough for me to give his first starring role a chance. Unfortunately, viewing this new absurdist comedy ended up being torturous for me.
In an average suburban town in middle America, Craig Waterman (Robinson) works at an app marketing agency and is an ordinary family man with a wife, Tami (Kate Mara), who runs her own floral business, and a teenage son, Steven (Jack Dylan Glazer). Things suddenly get interesting when a new couple move into the neighborhood, and the husband, Austin Carmichael (Paul Rudd), seems to have the perfect qualities when it comes to charisma and success. Though opposites in personalities, their friendship starts off with some potential until a very awkward moment at a house party instantly changes Austin’s feelings about Craig.
(A24 / 5th Season)
Friendship was very clearly crafted with Robinson in mind, to the point where I was surprised the comedian wasn’t listed as a co-writer, and DeYoung worked alone as both director and screenwriter here. I need to note that while I very much did not enjoy this film, it’s not because of anything technically wrong or structurally flawed in the execution. I’m a walking basket case who has always gotten second-hand embarrassment very easily. If something humiliating or cringe-inducing happens to a character in a movie or show, I instantly have to look away from the screen. This happened to me A LOT while watching Friendship. I’m obviously in the minority since both critics and movie viewers who have seen the indie comedy are praising it. If you’re already a fan of cult faves heavy on cringe humor like Martin Scorsese’s The King of Comedy (1983), Matt Spicer’s Ingrid Goes West (2017), and especially Ben Stiller’s The Cable Guy (1996), Friendship is definitely for you. Ironically, I actually enjoy Ingrid Goes West a lot, but The Cable Guy has never done anything for me, so I probably should have taken the hint when I kept seeing DeYoung’s movie compared to it. If anything, Friendship mostly reminded me that I’m more old school when it comes to comedy, and don’t see the appeal of the alternative/underground humor. Robinson clearly has found an effective schtick to coin a following within the past decade, so my lack of interest won’t impact his career. But ultimately, this is a no from me, dog.