A good friend is like a priceless piece of art—you’ll never want to part with it and will forever appreciate its beauty and grace. In Our Friend, the mate at the heart of the film’s moniker is played by Jason Segel and how he integrated into the lives of Casey Affleck’s Matt Teague and Dakota Johnson’s Nicole Teague.
Director Gabriela Cowperthwaite plays loosely with the time narrative, jumping from certain life markers to others, that all add up to a fascinating study about life, its peaks, and valleys as well as the art of growing older and how—naturally—who you were and what you wanted at 25 couldn’t be further from where you are currently.
Our story commences at university with Nicole dating Matt while undertaking a stage production that finds Dane Faucheux working “behind the scenes.” A long-running joke between these three friends is that Dane asked Nicole out on a date that never happened. Also, at work here is an anti-third form of storytelling. Dane is a huge part of Nicole and Matt’s life and has been for two decades.
The bond between these three is unbreakable, and that becomes undeniable when Nicole learns she has been diagnosed with terminal cancer.
Instead of giving us a straightforward narrative, this loose playing with the time allows the audience to not wallow in the sadness of a young mother of two not being there for much longer due to her cancer. Instead, the film firmly centers on the most beautiful of friendships that exists between this trio of individuals whose bond transcends life itself.
If Our Friend feels realistically raw it is because Brad Ingelsby’s script is based on the Esquire magazine article The Friend from writer Matthew Teague (played by Affleck). It is a slice of life story that exists exactly as that until illness gets worse and everyone’s world turns upside down.
As is the case with movies such as Our Friend, the key to its success or failure lies in the cast. Whether or not audiences will not only identify with these folks but be overcome by a tether between our hearts and the screen that is a requirement when dealing with life and death. May we be so lucky to have a Dane in our lives should tragedy every strike. He leaves his job and moves in with the couple and their kids to aide in their educating, personal growth and above all else—allow them to be kids while mom and dad deal with issues nobody under 13 should ever have to broach.
Segel has never been so spot-on as he is with what was on the page and what he delivered to the masses. The How I Met Your Mother Star is subtle when he needs to be, sensationalized when it’s required and inspiring as his lifelong pals go through something one would not wish upon their enemy. As his work has shown over his 23-year career, there are few actors who keenly know their place within an ensemble better than Segel. Whether 2015 End of the Tour,2012’s The Five Year Engagement,or 2009’s I Love You, Man—the Film Independent Spirit Awards nominee is an acting gift to those who share space with him on any particular project. In addition, his role as de-facto “father figure” to the Teague children, well, let’s just say may we be as lucky to have someone like that in our lives for our children.
Oscar winner Affleck is the brother in that family that I’d watch anything he was in… period. Ben’s sibling can play wallowing, break-your-heart, utter life desperation better than anyone (Manchester by the Sea, anyone?!). But each role in that realm is different and there is nothing Affleck has portrayed onscreen like he does with Our Friend. On one hand, he will be the grieving husband who just lost his soulmate. But, on the other hand, he will have to be the support system for children who will lose their mother. Therefore, Affleck’s definition of grieving will take on many different facades depending on the day and what is required of him as father, friend, or co-worker. It’s not a gut-wrenching performance, per se, because that is not what Matt would exhibit. But don’t kid yourself, this guy is hurting and after spending five minutes with Johnson’s Nicole… one can see why.
Johnson (recently seen in The High Note) is (thankfully!) moving past the train wreck that was the Fifty Shades series to film work that utilize her talents instead of her sex appeal. She, of the three leads, may have the toughest job. After all, she is the one who is leaving us behind as she travels into the great unknown. She is a hands-on mother to two wonderful little girls, a wife to a husband who couldn’t be more sensitive if he tried, and a BFF to a fellow in Dane who could easily use someone to support him emotionally because one gets the feeling that of the two men, it is Segel who will most be clipped by the death of his friend, Nicole.
Collectively, witnessing Segel, Johnson, and Affleck together is a cinematic gift. We’ve got the titillating star of a S&M movie series, an Academy Award winner and a sitcom star with deep dramatic gifts coming together to tell a tale that is overtly moving, impressively humorous when it needs to be and above all else—a welcomed modern chronicle about friendship, circa 2021, and how it could mean different things to different people. Despite it’s tragic and unavoidable conclusion, Our Friend is an absolute joy to behold and is a testament and tribute to the swath of people who routinely come in second when listing family and friends—even though for many, it should be the other way around.
The script by Ingelsby hits the notes it needs to while never forgetting to entertain and inspire. I would hope that presented with the similar circumstances, that I and those around me would be as stoic and strong when required to be as the titanic three in Cowperthwaite’s film. If done correctly and resonantly, movies such as Our Friend, the helmer should serve more like a symphony conductor of an enormous orchestra than a man or woman wielding a camera seeking to shock and awe us into the emotional headspace that the subject matter requires.
Cowperthwaite makes quite an impression with only her second full length narrative feature. She possesses a fearlessness of filmmakers that usually come from helmers twice her age and experience. Her command of the material is one thing, but it is her grasp of the emotional vat that has left my jaw ajar after having experienced her tragically heartwarming tale.
Friends, for most, are the key to successfully navigating some of life’s most strident hurdles. Our Friend illustrates the importance of those who we are not related to as being the ones most leaned on in time of crisis. As such, having friends such as Dane, Matt, and Nicole—as portrayed in Cowperthwaite’s joyous stunner—are equally important priceless parts of one’s life journey as the love of parental units or siblings.
Grade: A
Our Friend is available on various On Demand rental sites, such as FandangoNow, Vudu and Amazon Prime.