The Friend

I Cannot understand why this movie got a lot of negative reviews. It's idea was pretty understandable after the get go and the developments were also pretty predictable, but it is a movie with a lot of hurt. And one big Danish dog, with such sad eyes.

I liked the duality of the friendship in this movie. From one side Iris lost her best friend and she is chasing his memory through several channels. From the other side, she got another friend instead. One that doesn't need to talk for expressing his feelings, but you can understand exactly what he means, without even opening his mouth.

The details reveal slowly and after all layers are peeled, we are staying with a woman and a dog. And a problem. The twist almost doesn't exist, actually, but the movie's heart is in the right place, and it still manages to get his audience to get excited and maybe even weep.

Bill Murray is almost nowhere to be found, except in the poster of the movie, to attract the attention of potential audiences. But after reading the accusations about him, probably would be better to remove his figure from the movie's poster and leave the stage to both actual main heroes of this movie.

Naomi Watts is absolutely fantastic in this movie. What a comeback after a long time without any good projects, which she had participated in (Penguin Bloom was the last time she had a good performance - it was in 2020). She is accurate and very convincible in a role that is not so easy to perform.

Constance Wu, Carla Gugino and several other fine actors and especially actresses are participating in this movie, that is not any massive news to drama genre, with sub-genre of man's best friend, but it is definitely a good one, that is worth watching.

I had read that this movie had a bit of a convoluted plot, and I wondered whether or not to bother give it a chance. I, being a pet owner (on and off) most of my life decided it was worth taking the chance on and gave it a shot, which I am very glad I did. It is a heart-touching movie on many aspects and deals with a few important issues dealing with life, not just that of a dog but of our own mortality; and I am certainly pleased enough with this movie to bother going through the necessary steps to write this review.

Bill Murray is what really sold me on seeing this movie too; having grown up watching his comedies and enjoying his eclectic sense of humor for decades.

• Watched at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) on Sep. 11th, 2024 (First Watch)
• Format: Regular theatre

The story doesn't know what direction it's taking, which is why at most times it just keeps going on and on which feels like it's never ending and here comes the part where the watcher will feel the long and heaviness of its runtime which is not even long but it seems like that because of the slow and sometimes boring rhythm that the story has.

The dog is for sure the best part of the film. The way it was trained to showcase these emotions and use its body language to tell something is very impressive. I really didn't like the way the story approached Bill Murray's character as it felt very useless. The film to me is more like a story between a dog and a grieving person and not about a suicidal writer who died and left out a dog. It felt very chaotic in this aspect and it could've easily gotten more in depth in terms of this topic or showed a flashback that will support Bill Murray's character. Other than that, nothing more special but overall, a cute and warm film to watch!

This movie is about writers, but the real interesting part is about the dog and the part he plays.

Bill Murray is Walter, he is jogging one day in Brooklyn, along the river, when he sees this Great Dane, Apollo, sitting alone on a hill with no apparent collar or identification. Apollo becomes Walter's companion.

One of his close friends, and formerly a bit more than that, is Naomi Watts (who also is Executive Producer) as fellow writer Iris. She lives in a small, rent-controlled apartment that doesn't allow dogs. At least not yet!

So, right after Walter's untimely death everything points to Iris as the new caretaker of Apollo. This presents a number of difficulties that drive the rest of the story in this movie.

My wife and I watched it at home, on DVD from our public library. It is a refreshingly good movie, in this day of mostly mediocre movies. Watts and the dog are both very authentic in their roles.

Reuniting St Vincent (2014) stars, Bill Murray and Naomi Watts, The Friend is a heavy, emotional tale that deals with death, suicide, and perseverance.

Positives +Naomi Watts knocks it out of the park!

+Apollo the Great Dane is a cute pup actor.

+Scene voiceovers switch between characters +Thorough plot that examines all aspects of the story +A bit of creative fantasy

Negatives -Multiple "False endings" scenes. You think the movie is over, but then another scene appears. Again. And again.

-Felt too long with the above endings.

-A lot of characters thrown in at once, but not explained until later.

This movie had me crying in my seat. The connections of suicide, survivors guilt, regrets, and family were heavy. But your connections to these topics could increase or decrease your enjoyment. Buckle in for a long, but fulfilling journey.

-GremlinLord615 -Full Reviews on my YT.