FRIENDSHIP : Tuesday 22nd July 2025

I saw the M Rated 'FRIENDSHIP' earlier this week, and this American black comedy film is Written and Directed by Andrew DeYoung in his feature film making debut, although he has a whole stack of Directorial credits for short films and multiple episodes of TV series including '555', 'Dave', 'Shrill', 'PEN15', 'Our Flag Means Death' and 'The Decameron'. This film had its World Premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in early September last year as part of the festival's Midnight Madness section, and was released in the US in late May. It has received positive reviews from critics, and has so far grossed US$17M.

Craig Waterman (Tim Robinson) is a socially awkward marketing executive working in the fictional city of Clovis, and he and his wife Tami (Kate Mara) are preparing to sell their family home. Having recovered from cancer about a year ago now, Tami is becoming increasingly frustrated with Craig’s emotional disconnection and his lack of interest in her growing flower business, so much so that she has rekindled a relationship with her ex-boyfriend Devon (John Segarra). 

A new neighbour - Austin Carmichael (Paul Rudd) has just moved in down the street. He is a weatherman on the evening news, and he drops off a gift to Tami to introduce himself. Austin invites Craig over for a beer that evening and Tami accepts on his behalf. Craig agrees, albeit reluctantly.

The pair quickly strike up an unlikely friendship, bonding over '70's and '80's music, work frustrations, and a shared sense of being unfulfilled. During their first hangout, Craig introduces Austin to his personal mantra 'just ask' which worked for him in a work situation recently. This philosophy inspires Austin to pursue his longtime dream of becoming the town’s daytime weatherman - a gig he would much prefer to working nights. Later that evening Austin takes Craig on an adventure through a hidden tunnel system beneath Clovis City Hall, and they explore it together, having a beer and a cigarette atop the City Hall building overlooking all of Clovis. 

The next day, Austin calls Craig at work and convinces him to take the rest of the day off to go mushroom hunting in a nearby bog. Craig sinks knee deep into the boggy marsh and loses his mobile phone in the process. On their way back, they pass a yellow sports car at a dealership and Austin says that if he ever buys one, Craig will be the first to ride in it. As their bond goes from strength to strength, Craig becomes increasingly enamored with Austin, and even more so after Craig and Tami attend one of Austin's punk rock shows in which he is lead guitarist and singer. Energised by the connection, Craig becomes a more mindful husband, father, and coworker.

Cracks in their relationship however, begin to appear after Austin invites Craig to a hangout with a group of his friends. Initially cordial and relaxed, the evening takes a rapid and unexpected u-turn when Craig,  escalates a friendly boxing match with Austin by landing a cheap shot which sees Austin knocked to the ground. The group recoils at this, and Craig reacts by stuffing a bar of soap in his mouth as a bizarre act of self-punishment, while attempting to apologise and make light of the situation. 

Following this incident, Austin distances himself. Craig, desperate to reconnect, visits the TV station unannounced and causes Austin to fumble his words during his first daytime weather broadcast, for which he is admonished by the news anchor. Austin formally cuts ties with Craig, who later breaks into Austin’s home while he is out and his wife Bianca (Meredith Garretson) naps, and inadvertently steals a handgun from Austin's home office.

In a vain attempt to recreate the connection he had with Austin, Craig takes Tami, reluctantly, on a manic date through the underground tunnels beneath City Hall. Tami becomes disoriented and goes missing. The Police get involved in the search, resulting in both Craig and Austin being arrested for trespassing in the tunnels previously. In jail, it is revealed Austin wears a hairpiece, a secret he begs Craig to keep. Tami is eventually found about 24 hours later, shaken but safe. 

At her welcome-back party, Craig is shunned by Tami's friends and family and upstaged by Devon in a welcome home speech. Craig invites everyone to join him in a parade for Tami, but he end up standing alone outside his house very dejected. Tami later moves into Devon’s pool house. Craig’s downward spiral goes from bad to worse - he loses a very important client pitch and suffers a public meltdown at work, resulting in his immediate termination from the marketing firm.

Some time later, Craig attempts to rebuild his life. He reconnects with his son, Steven (Jack Dylan Grazer) and buys Tami a brand new customised van to support her flower business. The family is seemingly on the mend, until Craig drives past Austin’s house and sees him hosting another guys’ night and with the yellow sports car parked outside his house. Overcome with jealousy, Craig storms the gathering, holds the group at gunpoint with the gun he stole from Austin previously, and forcibly attempts to recreate the first night they all met. When Austin attempts to wrangle the gun out of Craig’s hands, it goes off, causing everyone to panic and duck for cover. In the struggle, Austin’s hairpiece again comes off. Craig, desperate to retain this shared secret, threatens his friends to stay on the ground while Austin puts his hairpiece back on. The Police arrive unexpectedly and Craig knocks himself unconscious while attempting to flee the scene by walking headlong through a plate glass door. In the back of the patrol car, Craig imagines an alternate version of events in which nothing went awry during that initial group hangout, and everything turned out like sunshine and rainbows. Craig watches from the back of the patrol car as Austin turns and gives him a wink, and Craig lets out a beaming smile.

A comedy no matter how intentionally black or bleak it's meant to be, needs to be pretty special for me to buy into it, and as such 'Friendship' really missed that boat! Whilst Tim Robinson may have the comedic chops to carry off his TV shows 'Detroiters' and 'I Think You Should Leave' this cringe worthy, anxiety inducing, and uncomfortably absurd film feels more like an over extended version of his TV series that has long since worn out its welcome. Paul Rudd, Kate Mara and Jack Dylan Grazer largely play it straight leaving Robinson to do the heavy comedy lifting which after the first twenty or so minutes I was largely over already. The critics conversely are waxing lyrical about this film, but I just left the cinema feeling ho-hum about the whole experience. 

'Friendship' merits two claps of the Odeon Online clapperboard from a possible five claps. 

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

SHAZAM! : Wednesday 10th April 2019.

'SHAZAM' which I saw earlier this week, is the seventh instalment in the DC Extended Universe based on the DC Comics of the same name, which first appeared in 1939 under his original name 'Captain Marvel' and subsequently changed to 'Shazam' in 1972 due to trademark conflicts over another character named 'Captain Marvel' owned by Marvel Comics. He is the alter ego of Billy Batson, a boy who, by speaking the magic word 'SHAZAM' (an acronym of six 'immortal elders', being Solomon, Hercules, Atlas, Zeus, Achilles, and Mercury), can transform himself into a costumed adult with the powers of superhuman strength, speed, flight and various other abilities. The film cost in the region of US$100M to bring to the big screen, is Directed by David F. Sandberg, was released in the US last week too and has so far received generally favourable Reviews with some describing it as one of the best Superhero films. The film has so far taken US$194M at the Box Office. A sequel is already in the works and under redevelopment.

The film opens in 1974 with a car driving along a deserted highway late at night. Driving the car is Mr. Sivana (John Glover) father of teenager Sid (Landon Doak) sat in the passenger seat and in the back youngest son Thaddeus (Ethan Pugiotto). The two brothers are arguing over a toy game that Thaddeus is amusing himself with, when the car seems to take on a life of its own, gathers speed rapidly, the windows frost over and then comes to a grinding halt leaving Thaddeus alone in the now stationary vehicle. He ventures outside to see that he has somehow been magically transported to some kind of ancient looking temple. There he meets the equally ancient looking wizard 'Shazam' (Djimon Hounsou), the last surviving wizard of the Council of Seven Wizards. Shazam explains that he has spent these past centuries seeking out a new champion without success who is 'pure of heart' to whom the old wizard can pass on his magical and mystical powers before he finally departs this mortal coil. He further explains that after the previous champion went rogue, the Seven Deadly Sins were released by him upon the ancient world to wreak widespread havoc, death and destruction. The Sins, are now trapped in stone statues within the temple, yet they tempt Thaddeus with promises of power and riches. However, for succumbing to them so easily he is banished back to Earth as unworthy to be the champion. Upon returning, Thaddeus' car gets T-Boned by an oncoming pick-up truck from which Sid and Thaddeus survive but Mr. Sivana is lying in a crumpled heap on the ground having been thrown from the car. Sid blames his little brother for being the cause of his fathers injuries.

We then fast forward to the present day Philadelphia. Here we meet up with fourteen year old Billy Batson (Asher Angel) who frequently taunts the local Police force while searching for his birth mother whom he was separated from when he was just four years old. Billy has been in foster care ever since and repeatedly has run away from his foster carers for varying reasons. He is placed into a new group home run by Victor and Rosa Vazquez (Cooper Andrews and Marta Milans respectively), who have five other foster kids: Mary Bromfield (Grace Fulton), Pedro Peña (Jovan Armand), Eugene Choi (Ian Chen), Darla Dudley (Faithe Herman) and Freddy Freeman (Jack Dylan Grazer), his new roommate who is a budding and nerdy superhero enthusiast.

Meanwhile, a now adult Thaddeus Sivana (Mark Strong) who has spent his life's work in trying to discover a way back into the magical temple, discovers a way of re-entering it. Upon arrival, Sivana confronts the now older and more frail Shazam, steals the 'Eye of Sins' from the 'Rock of Eternity' so freeing the Seven Deadly Sins and in doing so becomes their collective vessel. He uses his new powers to attack the wizard, and later returns to Earth to kill his abusive father, now the CEO of Sivana Industries, his domineering older brother Sid (Wayne Ward) and the other members of the Sivana Industries Board all gathered for a meeting.

While at school, Billy saves Freddy from bullies and leads them on a chase into a subway. While travelling on the subway train Billy experiences the train gather rapid speed, the lights go out, the windows frost over and the train then comes to an abrupt halt with only him in the carriage. He gingerly ventures outside to reveal that he is in the same ancient temple having been summoned by Shazam who chooses Billy as the next champion. By touching the staff and repeating Shazam's name, Billy is transformed into an adult costumed superhero who takes on the wizard's name before the wizard turns to dust, leaving behind only his staff.

Shazam (Zachary Levi) returns home and, with Freddy's help, starts to learn the extent and test out his newly gifted powers : super strength, electricity manipulation, bulletproof skin, hyper speed and flight (which he hasn't quite got the hang of yet!). Freddy posts videos online of Shazam testing his powers, creating an overnight viral sensation. 

Freddy brags to their classmates about knowing Shazam. Billy meanwhile abandons him and skips school to entertain fans with his newfound super powers for money. After seeing Shazam save a bus on the news, Sivana attacks him demanding he give up his power to him. After all, Shazam is just a fourteen year old boy trapped inside the body of an adult, so what use does he have for the powers bestowed upon him. The untested Shazam is easily defeated in close quarter hand to hand combat staged in a shopping mall at Christmas time. Shazam transforms back into Billy to escape into the fleeing crowd trying to exit the mayhem going on all around them. 

Sivana sees news coverage of Shazam and Freddy following Shazam's saving of the bus load of passengers after it had careered off the side of the freeway. From this he deduces Billy's identity and captures Freddy forcing him to reveal where Billy lives. Back at the foster family home, the other kids learn of Billy's secret alter ego, and also tell him that the have been able to locate his birth mother (something Billy has spent years trying to do unsuccessfully) who lives just two blocks away. Billy goes to meet his mother for the first time in ten years, but she tells him that she intentionally abandoned him, believing she was unable to care for him as a teenage single mother. A few minutes later, Billy leaves feeling dejected and rejected saying that he needs to return to his real family.

Sivana calls Billy from the Vazquez home. Once there, Shazam agrees to give Sivana his powers in exchange for sparing his family's lives. Sivana and Shazam travel to the temple through a temporary doorway portal in the house, but the other kids follow and attack Sivana, giving them all time to escape, before Shazam gave up his powers.

Sivana follows Shazam and the kids to a Christmas carnival, where Sivana unleashes the Seven Deadly Sins. Wrath does battle with Shazam, leaving the other Sins free to capture his family, so coaxing him to give up his powers. As Sivana recalls the Sins, Shazam uses that moment to pull the old wizards staff from out of his hands and stun Sivana. Shazam remembers the wizard's wise words and shares his powers with his foster brothers and sisters, transforming them into adult superheroes with powers equal to his own. Shazam snaps the staff in two and as the family of newly formed caped superheroes are kept occupied by the other Deadly Sins, Shazam resumes his battle with Sivana. On a rooftop Shazam baits out Envy, who had remained housed in Sivana's body as the smallest and ugliest of the Seven Deadly Sins, so leaving Sivana powerless. Shazam defeats Envy and saves a falling Sivana who has plummeted off the rooftop. Dropping him in the rubble of the broken Christmas carnival ground, Shazam removes the Eye of Sin from Sivana, which seals away the Sins back into their stone tombs. The family return the Eye of Sin to its rightful place within the temple and the Rock of Eternity, and realise that they can use the temple now as their secret lair.

I would have to say that I was just a little reluctant going in to see 'Shazam!' based on the experiences of the previous DCEU offerings, and yet I was pleasantly surprised. The film glides along on a steady stream of humour, fast paced action and emotion, intertwined with family values, a coming of age story, and good overcoming evil. Finally it seems that the DCEU has overcome its earlier challenges and is now hitting its straps with 'Wonder Woman', then 'Aquaman' and now 'Shazam' perhaps the least known character in the ensemble. That said, it's not up there with the Marvel competition, but on the strength of this offering, the critical response generated so far, the accumulating Box Office take and the fact that a sequel is already in the works, then this lighthearted yet still dark and emotional enough new character offering may be around for long enough for us to become truly invested in him. 

'Shazam!' warrants three claps of the Odeon Online clapperboard out of a possible five. 

-Steve, at Odeon Online-