By Paul Hall
Men and women, boys and girls, young and old — we all crave it in one way shape or form. What is it? Friendship. There are best friends, furry friends, former friends, friends with benefits, and friends for every occasion and purpose imaginable. But rarely do you find a true friend, one who will stay by your side at your best and worst moments. The new film Our Friend deals with one such friend and the lengths that a true friend will go to.
Matt (Casey Affleck) and Nicole (Dakota Johnson) are a young couple just trying to find their way. He is a talented writer who dreams of being on the level of top journalists around the world. She is an actress, doing musical theater and succeeding in her creative endeavors. The couple are together doing almost everything right and growing as two individuals into a single unit.
Early on in the couple’s relationship we meet Dane (Jason Segel), who knows Nicole from theater and even asked her out at one point. That action can be excused though, as he didn’t know Matt and Nicole were together at the time. As the years pass and friends come and go in Matt and Nicole’s life, there is one constant: Dane.
In Our Friend we get the story of Matt, Nicole and Dane told in a nonlinear order. What seems like a random hodgepodge of pieces tied to individual dates during the progression of the relationship is so much more.
In the simplest form of the story, Nicole is diagnosed with cancer and the stress and strain on all parties involved is used to detail the beauty of relationships under the heaviest of burdens. The film runs deeper than a simple plot summary can describe and therein is where the beauty lies in Our Friend.
Director Gabriela Cowperthwaite (Megan Leavey, Blackfish) weaves the piece in such a way to keep viewers from being overwhelmed by the magnitude of Nicole’s struggles. To tell the story in a linear manner would separate the happy from the sad and really destroy the emotions of many viewers for at least half of the film. In any tale of someone’s life there are good moments and bad, but we are not defined by the “patch” we are in. Our lives are a whole, and an individual’s life is a whole.
Segel shows deep and meaningful conviction in his role as Dane. I felt every emotion with him along the way. He portrays a friend who we all could only dream of having. He’s not just there in the good moments and making excuses in the bad. He’s not just there for play, he even cleans up the house when the worst happens. The perfect example of the dichotomy of friends exists when Dane arrives to be with the kids and the dog has had an accident of the floor. While one friend quickly ran rather than addressing things, Dane stepped up to the task. It’s a microcosm of the variety of friends that exist in life.
I loved so many aspects of this film, even that it evoked many tears along the way. There were tears of joy, tears of happiness and tears that were focused on personal life events of my own. Isn’t that what a film should do? A good presentation evokes emotion in the viewer whether it originates from what they see, or how they relate to what’s onscreen. Keep a box of tissues handy as they will be your best friend while experiencing Our Friend.
Paul’s Grade: B+
Our Friend
Rated R
Stars: Jason Segel, Dakota Johnson, Casey Affleck
Director: Gabriela Cowperthwaite