REVIEW: “Our Friend” Will Leave You Questioning the Lengths You Would Go For a Friend

Friendship can be a powerful thing. A friend is someone you go to for advice and lean on for support. When a friend is in need, many of us would drop anything and everything to be by their side, but would you give up your entire life for them? Gabriela Cowperthwaite’s Our Friend forces you to ask yourself that very question; would you put your life on hold to help a friend in need? Based on Matthew Teague’s Esquire article, ‘The Friend: Love Is Not a Big Enough Word’, after Nicole (Dakota Johnson) is diagnosed with terminal cancer, family friend, Dane (Jason Segel) decides to put his own life on hold to come and help Nicole, her husband, Matthew (Casey Affleck), and their family through this trying time.

At first, one would assume Our Friend would be focused on Nicole’s battle with cancer and how that affects Matthew and their family. However, it is really not. Sure, her cancer plays a big part, but the story is actually focused on the friendship between Dane and Matthew and how Dane gives up everything to help Matthew through this extremely trying time. It is a really beautiful thing to watch. Cowperthwaite has no problem showing the tragedy of the situation, but also the love that can be created from these types of situations. More importantly, she was able to make that love permeate throughout the entire film.

Segel is the clear standout in this film. For most, we are use to seeing Segel’s comedic side, so it was nice to see him play a more dramatic character. His portrayal of Dane will leave you not only wishing you had a friend like Dane, but also feeling a little sorry for him too. Johnson and Affleck also give audience-goers stellar performances. Johnson easily navigates through all of Nicole’s pains as does Affleck. However, their performances are made that much better when alongside Segel. The last performer that impressed me was youngster, Isabella Kai. Her character, Molly, goes through a lot in this film and Kai has the amazing ability to nail every scene and every emotion.

Before checking this film out, and you should definitely check it out, make sure you are mentally prepared. Our Friend will leave some watchers with tears in their eyes. For everyone else, the film will open up a world of questions about your own friendships and the lengths you would go to help a friend.

Grade: A