On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason) say goodbye to Max and take a mild victory lap in the process. Then they review Friendship, the new cringe comedy from Tim Robinson and A24. Is it the feel-bad movie of the year or just a feel-bad movie? Make sure to swing by Bulwark+ for our summer preview episode on Friday. And if you enjoyed this episode, please share it with a friend!
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I viewed it as kind of a horror movie. Similar (this is a stretch, maybe) to Alex Garland's Men. Which is another one where you can say "obviously, not all men are like that", but it is a commentary on a specific kind of guy and a sort of guy that these movies argue are within everyone that's socialized as a man.
Supposedly the home release will have an extended garage scene with Connor, which I am looking forward to as an ITYSL/Detroiters acolyte.
It was much more than just a name change. HBO programming was obscured once WBD took it over and created MAX. I couldn't find the Warner Bros. cartoons or the Turner network oldies that came with my pre-merger subscription. New HBO programming subsided to the point where there was nothing to watch. I was both a stock holder and a subscriber. Eventually I sold the stock (at a loss) and cancelled my subscription.
I definitely agree with Alyssa about the premise of 'Friendship' and similarly of 'Curb Your Enthusiasm'. The title 'Friendship' is already problematic for me because I have never had such a friend as "Austin" who would behave in that unpredictable and unnerving way, and would never stay friends with such a person.
There is far more going on in that movie that I would call emotional manipulation and mental dysfunction than, say, liberating journey of self-discovery by new-found soul brothers.
Same with 'Curb', although I am a fan of Larry David. He was asked once (and probably more than once) if he is like the character he plays in 'Curb'. He answered with what I thought was a well-adjusted response that he is not like that character because he himself is not a sociopath.
And that is really the point for me. The word Sociopathy would be a far more accurate title for 'Friendship'. Maybe it's the prevalence of sociopaths in today's politics and in the new media age generally -- especially and definingly in right-wing media and social media channels -- that somehow "Austin" can now fit right into our normal/normy mind-space and not be quite recognized as the disturbing aberration that he really is.
We watch too much "TV" and there's also that there's far too many shows being produced (https://www.nielsen.com/insights/2022/state-of-play/). For me, Netflix provides a wide variety and other outlets' shows are provided on Netflix, such as AMC's "The Terror" that I found very well made, the details were "Master and Commander" level, so the pull to spend more money on other outlets isn't enough. There is already a huge number of shows that I already don't watch because I don't find their thumbnail compelling enough.
There’s a new marvel out that’s supposed to be nuts
I happen to agree with Alyssa on shows like this. Sometimes you aren’t the intended audience. At the same time, I find it annoying that I can’t enjoy whatever “this type of movie” is. For me, it’s slapstick comedy.
tbf this is me with musicals
Thanks Alyssa. I’m a man and I know it’s very hard for us to understand what it’s like moving through the world as a woman. Thank you for your openness and candid assessment. And of course, this is going to affect your viewing experience so much if there is a real life thing you can’t stop thinking about when this person is on screen.
Lord help us
Cannes, schmannes. 😉
If someone wants to sponsor an ATMA trip to Cannes, I’m all for it!
I’ll put something in the kitty!