Review: Our friend (Hollywood) by Jyothi Venkatesh

Producers- Teddy Schwarzman, Ryan Stowell, Micheal A. Pruss and Kevin J. Walsh

Director-Gabriela Cowperthwaite

Star Cast-Jason Segel, Isabella Kal, Violet McGraw, Casey Affleck and Dakota Johnson

Genre- Social

Rating- ***

Jyothi Venkatesh

A painful Ode to true friendship

Based on a true story of the Teague family which is devastated by life-altering news, their friend decides to put his life on hold to live with them

Matt Teague (Casey Affleck) who is a journalist who travels to the world's remote corners to cover stories on war and death, is shocked and not at all prepared to digest the news that his wife Nicole (Dakota Johnson) has advanced stage of cancer, with not much time left.

Gabriella Cowperthwaite’s film makes up a devastating essay, which Matt Teague had published in Esquire magazine, winning a National Magazine Award for putting the experience into words, but the director has made an attempt to capture only a fraction of them make it into The Friend, her big-screen interpretation of Teague’s story.

Matt Teague puts his career on hold to focus on taking care of her and his two young girls Molly (Isabella Kai Rice) and Evie (Violet McGraw). Dane (Jason Segel) works at retail stores and wants to be a stand-up comedian, and lives with his parents in their house.

Dane jeopardizes his job and relationships to help Matt and his family

However Matt doesn’t expect Dane (Jason Segel), Nicole’s college friend, to abandon his life and move across states to be with the Teague family. Yes Dane jeopardizes his job and relationships to help Matt and his family,

Though on the flipside, the narrative goes back and forth could at a snail’s pace and tends to make you bored at times, it also sets out to establish the relationship between the three main leads and balances the very heavily sad moments with happier aspects.

While Jason Segel’s performance is earnest almost throughout the film including the moments of pathos, and the actor is convincingly vulnerable as the reliable friend genuinely invested in the Teague family irrespective of his reasons and motivations, Casey Affleck is too good as far as displaying his emotions are concerned.

Mention ought to be made of the sterling performance of Dakota Johnson who steals the scene with her author backed performance as a distressed woman who with great DIFFICULTY and personal turmoil, succeeds in coming to terms with her mortality.

even as she is slowly and steadily succumbing to the dreaded cancer invading her body and mind, but undoubtedly puts on her steps forward with a cool demeanor.

It is excruciating to see her condition decline and the strain that it puts on her friendships and marriage.

Isabella Kai Rice as Molly and Violet McGraw as Evie adequately play their parts with extreme earnestness.

To sum up, the film is nothing but a painful ode to true friendship!