Phil_M_A_Kerr

Watched this straight after Fantastic Four, which I also enjoyed. But it's comforting to see the performers in The Friend who are from my epoch (read: older than your average movie actor's age). Bill Murray, of course, brings a lot of gravitas to a film and Naomi Watts knows her way around a film set. These are compliments, BTW.

The many supporting character roles are thoroughly enjoyable and performed very well.

The story does capture you because, you know, like, it's about a dog! And how can you make an adult drama based around a dog? Well, they did it here. If I'm honest, I'll say that I was not surprised to see a female writer's name in the closing credits for the book upon which the film was based. But that's not actually a criticism if you can believe it. There's another review on IMDB here that mentions a certain way death is dealt with in men's movies vs women's movies.

Toward the end there is a surreal sequence that coincided with the departure of several audience members from my session. This initially surprised me. But those of us who were raised on David Lynch might appreciate these flights of fancy where those raised on Harold Potter and Anthony Stark may not.

It's a clickbait review title. I thought the movie was pretty good. It's sort of following on from what I called the "emo" tone of Thunderbolts*. It has enough captivating special effects, enough earnest character interplay, and enough originality in its direction and design. What it lacks compared to that first Iron Man phase of what came to be known as the MCU it makes up for in the spookier mood. I'm talking real hard-hitting concepts. Sure, Thanos' all-powerful "click" was genocidal but we were so dazzled by a multitude of interesting superbeings, each with a wonderful origin story, and this insulated us from the full magnitude Thanos' brutality.

At this stage in our 20-year slog of superhero movies, the razzle-dazzle has dulled and in its place story writers are digging a little deeper and darker into that familiar superhero story. They're actually using this well-known template for escapism in order to reveal a bit more realism about life's difficult choices. It is engaging, if not as popular.

[Edit: there's a mid-credits scene! I only know this because after leaving the complex I noticed the rain. I rushed back into the cinema to grab my umbrella which I'd forgotten. I heard movie dialogue & thought perhaps they were ...testing the sound system? Doh!!! I wouldn't last a minute if I were a character in one of those films.)

With some time off work I had the mental space to catch a random movie. If I'm busy I get choosy about which fillems I watch but if there's time to relax there's nothing better than catching a flick that's outside of this faux cinephile's purview.

I can't ever recall seeing the OG in this franchise. My formative years were with OG Jason & Freddy. I struggled with Scream - showing my age here hahaha - which arrived a good decade after my nightmare-spawning duo of Voorhees & Kruger. But in an attempt to hang on to my youth (don't we all?), I conjure an affinity with those later 90s stars. In reality, my first real scream queen was Jamie Lee Curtis, whilst the scream princess was a TV-addicted youngster, Drew Barrymore.

Nevertheless, it was heartwarming to see JLH, Prinze, & co strutting their stuff with poise and authority. But they're minor roles, really. A new generation of talented up-&-comers carry the burdensome baton of guilt around Southport and they're up to the task.

You get the feeling that the story took second place to maintaining an atmosphere of constant tension. The direction, cinematography and editing give the film its elevated heartbeat. It's only when characters start explaining stuff that I began to think about tomorrow's chores. And that was momentarily and only twice, maybe thrice.

It's a commendable late entry in the franchise that as many thrillseekers will get a kick out of as film boffins will turn their nose up at.

One final note; these slasher films give movie makers licence to embrace the darkness. Literal darkness. Unlike celluloid films of yesteryear, modern movie cameras can see Everything. Ergo, there's a tendency to show Everything. Not on this occasion. Spooky shadows abound and unlit areas are embraced.