Our Friend (2019)

Directed by: Gabriela Cowperthwaite | 124 minutes | drama, romance | Actors: Jason Segel, Isabella Kai, Violet McGraw, Casey Affleck, Dakota Johnson, John McConnell, Jeronimo Spinx, Denée Benton, Jake Owen, Jason Bayle, Sampley Barinaga, Marielle Scott, Lane Alexander, Ahna O’Reilly, Paige King, Jacinte Blankenship, Azita Ghanizada

Movies about diseases attract a certain audience. It is not for nothing that commercial channels program tear-jerkers on set days to please their viewers. This genre clearly aims to provoke emotions and cheap sentiment is often used to achieve that goal. ‘Our Friend’ is about a family dealing with a terminal illness. A mother of two daughters learns that she has limited time on earth and that has repercussions on the whole family. Genre fans will have put this film high on their ‘to watch list’ by now, but if you’re not sensitive to melodrama, is this film worth watching? The answer is ‘yes’.

‘Our Friend’ centers on Nicole and Matt Teague (Dakota ’50 Shades of Grey’ Johnson and Casey Affleck). This couple has two daughters and is very happy. Their lives are turned upside down when Nicole is told she has cancer. Her life expectancy is only a few months. During this period, family friend Dane (Jason Segel) decides to assist the couple. But can you keep a friendship when you have to deal with such intense emotions?

On paper, ‘Our Friend’ appears to be a sentimental dragon of epic proportions. Fortunately, this turns out not to be the case in practice. That’s thanks to the fantastic cast. Affleck is a great actor and proves it again in this movie. However, it is Johnson who steals the show. She proves (once again) that she has more to offer and that she is much more than the hooded heroine from the ’50 Shades’ trilogy. Johnson plays a layered role and does so powerfully and convincingly. Segel is best known as a comedian, but he is also good in a serious role. His sympathetic demeanor helps with that.

‘Our Friend’ is a well-made tearjerker with a fantastic cast. Unfortunately, the film loses impact due to the somewhat muddled direction by Gabriela Cowperthwaite. She jumps back and forth in time and makes a logical story unnecessarily complicated. Unfortunate. That does not alter the fact that both tearjerkers and drama lovers will appreciate this film.