Friendship (2024)

One of the most comfortable awkward movies I have ever watched. The title suggests that the theme of this movie will be friendship, but in truth it is mostly about Craig. Craig is selling his house, has a family, and a good job. Craig needs a friend. He has a new charismatic neighbor named Austin, whose packages he always receives by accident, and Austin wants to be Craig’s friend.

I spent a better part of the movie not knowing that Austin had a wife himself. When I heard his voicemail for the first time I wasn’t sure if Austin was delusional himself and had kept his ex-wife as part of his voicemail message after a divorce. Austin’s forway into the peculiar is fun. He has obscure knowledge that he channels into his purchases and adventures. But why does he have a gold plated gun? Craig is enamored with Austin and day dreams of their future adventures together, seeing a bright future where Austin will in turn need Craig as Craig needs Austin.

As uncomfortable as their friendship is, it actually looks somewhat two-sided to the very final moments where Craig escalates his own behavior to protect his best friend's secret. Yet, Austin has maintained a healthier balance of his own absurdities that he appears to be trying to protect by acknowledging the questionable mental health that Craig displays.

Craig is shown to be extremely checked out while attempting to conduct an expert level performance of a charismatic every man. By the end of the film I feel like he had just started the journey of discovering who he was or what he wanted from his life.

Craig is good enough at his job to lead a team. Made up of quasi work friends who constantly have him as the outsider as they have an internal bond that seems to be particular to themselves. He loves his wife and child, but that shows more progressively throughout the movie rather than most of the interactions throughout the film, which are plentiful. 

Craig shows a bit of the type of adoration he displays for Austin for his wife Tami. The viewer learns at the start of the film that Tami has beat cancer and runs a floral shop from the family home. In one capacity she is just part of Craig’s humdrum life, pursuing her own interests and friendships. But over several scenes you see her inspire her husband with her own vision of the world. Whether her husband appreciates her world view or not, those around her are happy to interact and celebrate her. For example, Tami has a close friendship with her ex boyfriend and firefighter Devon. That is not a problem as far as we can tell with Craig, but it does create these heavy pauses in conversation. Does it just make Craig slightly uncomfortable or does Craig feel like there is something he is supposed to do in that situation? What he mostly does is try to make light jokes, commentary, nothing, and watch marvel movies.

For all this character exploration it manages to be a hilarious and cohesive comedy. For all the cringe moments that make you want to look away, it makes you stick around by tampering it with well timed laughs.

Written by Natasha Melbrew

2025/05/20