Ben Cahlamer
Leave it to Naomi Watts and Bill Murray to remind us of the beautifully rich complexities of friendship —companionship, grief, healing, love, loss, and all the turmoil that goes along for the ride in Scott McGehee’s and David Siegel’s exquisite drama, The Friend.
Based on the novel of the same name by Sigrid Nunez, co-writers and directors McGehee and Siegel fashion a warmly nuanced picture of Iris (Watts, Mulholland Drive), a novelist commissioned by her mentor, Walter (Murray, St. Vincent), to write what essentially amounts to Walter’s epitaph when he decides to commit suicide. The Friend is Iris’s journey to reconcile her feelings as she attempts to slowly complete her final assignment from Walter with his estranged daughter, Val (Sarah Pidgeon).
One would be disposed to think that the effort to complete such a momentous task would fill the remaining run time with its brazen, sharply witted dialog. However, McGehee and Siegel layer in “Walter’s steed,” Apollo (Bing), a Great Dane who is larger than life. McGehee and Siegel are clever in foreshadowing the essential elements defining Iris’s future life in clever, emotional ways to great effect; they don’t saddle Iris, a compulsive depressive who once found a deep connection with a narcissist whose vocal tones soothed his canine friend, with too much.
McGehee and Siegel wrap Iris in reserved intelligence, and Watts responds with a variety of feelings, guided by empathy, strength of character, and storytelling. The story takes time defining the semi-comfortable, barely treading-water novelist in a New York City rent-controlled one-bedroom apartment, handed down to her by her father. However reserved Iris is, she wears her heart on her sleeve, attested to by Ann Dowd’s Marjorie, whose welcome, motherly presence gives Iris’ life a reality check when needed, as does Hektor (Felix Solis), the building superintendent, whose caring personality leaps off the screen, even as he is forced to set hard boundaries on Iris.
Carla Gugino plays Elaine, Walter’s first wife. Elaine pops in and out throughout The Friend, serving as a raw connection to the present while commenting on Iris’s past relationship with Walter. Two key scenes involving Watts and Gugino define disappointment and pain in a way that only someone who’d had an intimate relationship with Walter could understand. Their bond is, singularly, the strongest human element, beyond their shared history with Walter.
The bond between Iris and Apollo is the strongest. It develops naturally throughout The Friend as Walter’s widow, Barbara (Noma Dumezweni) surprises Iris with Walter’s wish that she take care of Apollo. From their first encounter to the final frame, McGehee and Siegel establish an on-and-off relationship between the Great Dane and Iris, counterbalancing the fight-or-flight feelings Iris experiences, a result of Walter’s passing and her ongoing obligations, namely living.
Iris nervously accepts Apollo into her world. Apollo unapologetically explores his new home with ease but finds comfort on Iris’s bed and with a t-shirt that belonged to Walter. Especially touching is the look in Apollo’s eyes: he misses his master and will not accept any substitutions, even though Iris hasn’t picked up on the signals; the story constantly reflects how dogs truly feel.
The Friend foreshadows their journey together visually without significant bumps in the road, thus avoiding the cliches that can happen with far more serious stories adapted from their novel origins about the innate emotional relationships between dogs and humans. Giles Nuttgens’s cinematography takes Apollo’s physical stature in as much as Watts’ stature into consideration—neither character overshadows the other, their respective presence complements one another. When other humans inhabit the frame, Apollo’s stature is a consideration, but that never takes away from the intended beat of the respective moment.
As Iris’s life begins to unravel, it is Apollo pulling at our heartstrings, generating empathy from the audience for both their plights – Apollo, missing his master and having no control over what happens to him, a consistent reminder is injected into the film through the line, “What happens to the dog?” while Iris, fighting to complete the novel and her unfinished work, is in a constant fight-or-flight reaction, trying to balance her obligations while finding the best solution for Apollo. The fight-or-flight reaction is the constant throughout the story, one that Isaac Hagy’s editing organically plays into in a life-affirming way.
Sarah Pidgeon’s Val is The Friend’s enigma. As Walter’s daughter, she has an attachment to Apollo, however, Val can take it or leave it at will. Similarly, she is brought on to help Iris with Walter’s epitaph, much to Iris’s chagrin. It is the relaxed vibe that Pidgeon brings to the role that helps the audience’s collective mind to be at ease, ultimately allowing them to be free, not from responsibility, but to live a fulfilling life. Val is Iris’s future, whereas Elaine is her present and her past.
While a lush score from Jay Wadley and Trevor Gureckis accentuates the film’s emotions, McGehee and Siegel inject several popular tracks, most notably for this critic was the use of Bob Dylan’s “Wigwam” in a truncated format; its use signals hope and acceptance with the understanding that the journey is nowhere near complete. Its use is an intentional signal for Iris and Apollo. Additionally, Harry Nilsson’s “Everybody’s Talkin’” is used to great effect: Walter talked more about that dog to everyone so that everyone would know who he was.
It is said that friends come and go throughout our lives; they will enter for a reason, a season, or a lifetime. The Friend’s crescendo strikes with a dream-like sequence between Watts and Murray as Iris asks Walter to explain his actions. The depth of drama between the two actors is exceptionally refreshing, bookending why Apollo ended up with Iris—a reason. Much of the film is shot in winter, evoking a coldness, yet Apollo remains—a season.
The driving force behind the rich, complex friendship shared between Iris and Apollo is a lifetime element of The Friend. Watts, McGehee, Siegel, Murray, and Apollo converge to bring a humanely driven story full of depth, warmth, and understanding. Grab your Kleenex, your popcorn, maybe a chardonnay, your best friend, and enjoy the heart that is The Friend.
