" Our Friends" : Let us learn about Life and Love

The American drama Our Friend with Casey Affleck, Dakota Johnson and Jason Siegel is a story about a young woman dying of cancer, cared for by two men. The picture is based on an article by a journalist who told about a personal experience of saying goodbye to his wife, which would have been much more difficult if it had not been supported by a family friend.

Our Friend premiered back in 2019 at the Toronto International Film Festival, where it was generally well received and hit theaters in 2021.

At first glance, the film seems like a heavy and tearful drama about a dying person - this is the kind of sad movie that viewers usually avoid, who are not ready to shoulder the two-hour burden of oppressive life circumstances, among which there is no place for a happy ending.

However, there is one peculiarity in Friends Forever that changes the supposed crushing aftertaste of the film for unexpectedly warm emotions. They become a reaction to an inspiring story about the value of friendship, which is learned in everyday life.

The thing is that the script for the film is an adaptation of an article titled The Friend: Love Is Not a Big Enough Word, which was published by Esquire in 2015. The material was written by journalist Matthew Teague, who spent two years caring for his wife, who was diagnosed with cancer. Prior to that, Matthew had worked as a reporter in the hottest spots in Pakistan and Somalia, but this could not compare with what he had to go through at home, where his loved one was slowly dying. Coping with the physical and moral test was extremely difficult, but Matthew was helped by a family friend who first came to visit for the holidays, and then stayed to live in Teague's house, relegating all his affairs to the background.

The Friends Forever feed gives a brief background about the heroes' acquaintance. And not about how the married couple fell in love (Casey Affleck and Dakota Johnson), but about how the young family became close friends with the unlucky stand-up adapter (this role was played by actor Jason Siegel). Further, the chronology of the film jumps between events from the past and the present, dividing the lives of the heroes into two stages: before and after they learned about the diagnosis. So we see the difference between a cheerful theater actress who is raising two children in love, and a tired prisoner of a disease that changes under the influence of potent drugs.

It should be noted that the scriptwriters of the film delicately omit details from the article, in which the journalist describes the physical processes that take place with his wife's body, and also do not focus too much on what is happening in the last days before his death (therefore, Matthew Teague's text is much heavier and sadder, rather than his film adaptation).

At the same time, the creators of the picture preserve all the most important moments, demonstrating the fatigue and powerlessness of the protagonist, to whom a friend comes to help. Daily support in ordinary household chores becomes the salvation of someone who must find the strength to accept the tragedy and take on the role of a single parent.

Interestingly, the character of Jason Siegel is going through his problems and personal crises (the scene with a trip to the canyons all alone briefly reveals him from a new side), but it is thanks to this that he finds the opportunity to help others, sacrificing his personal life and actually becoming a full part of the family for his friends.

Unlike other dramatic films dedicated to the deadly diseases of the main characters, the film Friends Forever does not try to create deliberately tearful moments or to elevate everyday drama to an unbearable degree of despair. Yes, this is a story of an inevitable goodbye, but there is room for reassuring moments that manifest in understanding, friendly support.

What does not work very well in the film is the ten-year difference between the past and the present, which on the screen is noticeable only in the state of the heroine Dakota Johnson. At times, Casey Affleck and Jason Siegel look exhausted playing younger versions of their characters, which can be confusing. True, over time this will no longer be striking - the most important scenes will be scenes without flashbacks.

It is likely that the theme of the film "Friends Forever" will alienate many viewers, but those who decide to watch will have a rather life-affirming story about friendship, which helped to go through a long trial of illness.

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