Friendship

Friendship is an absolute gem of a movie. The film is laugh out loud funny during its entire runtime. Tim Robinson and Paul Rudd are both hilarious and everyone else in the ensemble is very funny as well. The movie balances physical humor, funny situations, and well written jokes very well. The movie has some great set up and pay off jokes. Andrew DeYoung wrote and directed this movie and he did a great job in both of those aspects. The film is also shot very well, especially for a comedy, the cinematography here is fantastic. The movie is also very well edited and uses typical comedic editing tropes usually found in older movies or cartoons to full effect in this movie. I highly recommend this one if you like comedies.

On the one hand, it's got moments of genuine hilarity and ingenuity. Rare these days in movie theaters - it seems only stand-up has any guts and originality. I laughed hard in places and so did the first-weekend LA crowd. On the other hand, the story is without much momentum and lacks a sense of inevitability. Feels random and without clear purpose/meaning. As though the whole thing were a series of sketches strung together with no driving thematic goal. Another way of putting it is that it does not get more interesting as it goes. But the acting and casting is superb. Very well directed. Bravo!

This movie has more replay value than anything else I have seen in YEARS, and that's one of the strongest suits you can have "as a movie". It's not only the best comedy I have seen in years, but the best movie of 2025 thus far, by a long shot.

I'm definitely a fan of I Think You Should Leave, but not as diehard as the majority of my friends. I like Tim Robinson a lot, but I think his humor only works in about 60% of the sketches. I feel that here, in feature film format, Tim Robinson excels to the level of legend. It goes without saying that Paul Rudd is the ONLY choice for his character, considering it is seemingly universally agreed that he is one of the most charming men in Hollywood - and that is what this character is all about. Every element of the plot progression between the two of these guys hits, and sometimes even hurts. The laughs are literally endless all the way through this movie, and it is packed to the brim with iconic, quotable lines just like all of our favorite comedies of the 90's and early-to-mid 2000's. I don't think there's a single joke in the entire movie that doesn't land. The soundtrack which consists almost entirely of Slipknot, John Maus, and Ghost Town DJ's won huge points with me. Kata Mara was perfect casting for the wife - totally endearing and when she's mad, it's totally believable. The son was hilarious, and there were some really fantastic cameos by some up-and-comers like Ivy Wolk, and of course, the perfect small role for the scariest new guy in comedy, Conner O'Malley. I wish Jon Glaser would have been utilized a bit more, but I suppose I can't "have my cake and eat it too".

It is very rare I desire going to see a movie more than once in the theater these days, but this one I could definitely see going to catch at least two more times before it leaves theaters. This one's legendary.

Rating - 9.2: Overall, an "I Think You Should Leave" sketch, if it were 97 minutes long and shot by an auteur; this movie uses such a simple idea, like a friends breaking up, but dramatizes it so heavily and shoots it like a P. T. Anderson movie that it becomes the perfect parody; all brought together by Tim Robinson's cringe comedic style.

Direction - Great: The direction on a macroscale feels very auteur-driven, as the movie feels like it was shot by P. T. Anderson, but in a parody style; The direction on a microscale feels like an "I Think You Should Leave" sketch for 97 minutes, and it's executed to perfection; the storytelling uses templates you would see from a hardcore thriller like *Uncut Gems* or *Prisoners*, but is just parody because of what the movie is actually about; they build tension incredibly well, because the movie just comes off as satire because of how seriously they make the stakes

Story - Great: The concept is so simple because it is just friends breaking up, but because they make it seem more dramatic than it actually is, the movie just becomes even more funny; the plot structure is pretty standard; character writing is great as you really get a sense of who Robinson's and Rudd's characters are as they create a relationship that feels like a parody of "Talented Mr. Ripley" or "Saltburn"; the character writing makes these characters feel like they are in a dramatized production of "I Think You Should Leave"

Screenplay - Great: The dialogue feels like it came straight from an "I Think You Should Leave" sketch; it is surprising that this movie wasn't written by Tim Robinson; the humor is great, as the movie is just an "I Think You Should Leave" sketch for 97 minutes; the symbolism is surprisingly there, as they talk about themes of loneliness, friendship, and obsession; the foreshadowing is prevalent

Acting - Very Good: Tim Robinson - Incredible (I love you so much; you are everything I want you to be; He basically plays his "I Think You Should Leave" persona for the entire movie; he develops great chemistry with the cast, especially Rudd; it borderline feels method), Paul Rudd - Very Good (Plays the straight man very well, and his stature and aura help make the movie realistic in Robinson's being so attracted to wanting to be his friend; he has great chemistry with Robinson), Kate Mara - Good (Plays the wife character well and has good chemistry with Robinson), Rest of the cast - Good (Everyone in the cast really brings something to the table; they work very well with the main cast to make the movie funny and such a great experience)

Score - Pretty Good: Helps make the movie feel mysterious and complements the tone shifts

Cinematography - Very Good: Makes the movie feel like it was shot by an auteur, as each camera angle feels like an art piece; The director said he drew inspiration from "The Master," and it shows

Editing - Good: Makes the movie feel like it was cut together by an auteur

Sound - Pretty Good

Pacing - Pacing is the right pace for the most part, as it uses its runtime well; Because the movie is a cringe comedy, it can feel slow at times; it definitely feels like they could have cut 5 minutes to make the movie a little tighter

Climax - The climax is executed to perfection as it feels like a culmination of this comedic ride we've been taken on

Tone - The tone is dramatic and thriller-esque, juxtaposed with "I Think You Should Leave" to create a movie that just feels like a parody of auteur-driven movies.