With Tim Robinson‘s first starring film role in writer-director Andrew DeYoung’s A24 debut Friendship, the comedian hits every cringe note with assistance from Paul Rudd and Kate Mara.
The anxiety-inducing dark bromance stars Robinson as suburban family man Craig, who quickly develops a man crush on his new neighbor Austin (Rudd), a beloved local weatherman with his own rock band and an eclectic collection of ancient artifacts.
But his desperate attempts to impress his new pal only makes things disastrously awkward, reverberating through his life and impacting his marriage, job and entire wellbeing as he gets recurring nosebleeds throughout, which Robinson uses as a hilarious physical comedy device.
“This is why guys shouldn’t have friends,” Craig gripes in one scene, which feels like a good thesis for this film who’s desperate for connection but keeps getting in his own way.
Paul Rudd is the ultimate match for Tim’s unique brand of humor, bringing a distinct charm and ease to the role while representing a perceived level of comfort and contentment with his life that Craig lacks. That cognitive dissonance represents the common human struggle of what we present to the world versus what we only share with our closest friends and the people we can trust.
Meanwhile, Craig holds onto their new bond so tight, it breaks. Robinson’s humor is wildly cringe and enjoyable as usual, as the physical comedy master has to say very little to elicit laughs. In one scene, he fills his coffee cup to the brim, trying not to spill it through a busy office, an appropriate metaphor for the tense journey through this troubled mans’ perception of himself.
Mara plays Craig’s wife Tammy, a florist who’s having a “try something different year” after surviving cancer. Sick of living in her husband’s narcissistic shadow, she begins reconnecting with an ex (played by Josh Segarra in a brief cameo that he nails), urging Craig to make a friend of his own. She agrees on his behalf to drinks with the new neighbor, which sets the plot into motion.
Reminiscent of Jim Carrey and Matthew Broderick in Ben Stiller’s The Cable Guy (1996), the film is set in our modern era of rampant toxic masculinity with a growing male loneliness epidemic. As such, when fragile men like Craig feel emasculated, they feel the need to act out, something Robinson does expertly. Also keeping with that theme are tons of Marvel references to the point that Mara (who starred in 2015’s Fantastic Four) was likely getting annoyed.
As Claudette Godfrey, SXSW VP of Film & TV, prefaced ahead of the film, it’s equal parts funny, subversive and surprising. Filled with sewer excursions, unexpected orgasms and an even less expected Subway product placement during a psychedelic toad trip in the back of a cellphone store, the film never lets up on the absurdity long enough to catch your breath from laughing.
Craig is a protagonist you can’t help but enjoy watching fail, but that’s by design for Robinson, who wants to entertain audiences with his portrayal of a fool with a heart of gold (silver at the very least).
After his brief stint on Saturday Night Live and his hit Netflix sketch comedy series I Think You Should Leave, Friendship takes Robinson’s signature cringe humor to new, uncomfortable heights, emphasized perfectly by supporting performances from Rudd and Mara in a dark comedy that isn’t afraid to look stupid in front of the guys.
Title: Friendship
Festival: SXSW (Festival Favorite)
Distributor: A24
Release date: May 9
Director-screenwriter: Andrew DeYoung
Cast: Tim Robinson, Paul Rudd, Kate Mara, Jack Dylan Grazer
Running time: 1 hr 40 min
Content shared from deadline.com.