Best F(r)iends Volume Two (2018) User Reviews

Friendship Over Money

[ThomasDrufke · 5/10 · 18 August 2019]

At the very least, these two films do a nice job of using Wiseau's weird quirks and personality to its full potential. Admittedly, this volume wasn't as appealing, as Wiseau is more of a background plot device until the third act, and we have to deal with Jon and Traci's quest to open to the safe through a bunch of uninteresting characters. There's more slow motion, wal-mart versions of Bruce Dern and Bruce Willis, and an ending that actually pays off the rest of the story. And I think much like The Room, there's plenty in both of these movies that are worth a YouTube re-watch at some point down the line.

5.1/10

Better than Part 1!

[Agent10 · 6/10 · 16 October 2021]

I will start off my review with a bit of implicit bias. Most of this movie was shot in my hometown and I also got to meet Greg Sestero during the filming of this movie. So yes, I definitely enjoyed this part of the movie than the first part. Either way, onto the rest of the review.

Now according to Sestero, he was looking to make Best F(r)iends as a devotional to David Lynch, more specifically than 1990s Lynch who was weird for the sake of being weird. The formula and ambitions didn't seem right for the first part, so the weirdness was scaled back. As for the second part....they went all in. It's only perfect they did this in a weird part of the world that is the cities of Tucson and Benson, Arizona.

Anyway, we pick up where the first movie ended and Jon and Traci are on the run. Traci decides to call her Uncle Rick (played by Rick Edwards) to help them crack the safe/ATM they have with Harvey's money in it. The movie just starts going off on bizarre tangents, namely with Rick Edwards just owning every scene he is in. I loved this character, mainly because I have met people like him who routinely go to gun shows, eat nothing but steak and claim his friends The Oathkeepers are not a fascists but patriots. Trust me, there are a lot of Uncle Rick's in Arizona.

Anyway, double crosses and murders happen aplenty, and we even find out Harvey is still alive (please, was this really a spoiler). While part 2 needed more Tommy Wiseau, the parts we get him in are just fine. The ending also proves the true meaning of the movie's title, in case you were wondering.

Now this "movie" in general was an interesting step for all of those involved. While Sestero and Wiseau will always be associated with The Room, they have tried to do more legitimate projects that tap into the badness of said film while also showing they will not let it define them. I don't think they will ever get rich off their current life trajectories, but they will at least embrace and enhance the names they made for themselves. For fans of The Room, I definitely recommend these two movies.

Best Tv Show...EVER

[bencopping · 13 January 2019]

I HAVE NO WORDS FOR THIS.

Tops all other Tv shows I have ever watched, and most likely ever will watch. It had everything thing from houmor, to phychological horror. Tommy Wiseau with his usual ´Ocsar winning' performances...

Not watching this will leave a forever empty hole of regret, gaping at its longing for this Tv show to overflow it with satisfaction.

Poor Follow-up

[saint_brett · 2/10 · 23 February 2023]

I wonder if Tommy Wiseau is this direct in real life? On the surface he doesn't look much, but he doesn't miss a beat and is sharp in contrast.

It's revealed early in the movie that Wiseau survived Volume 1 and has already captured Mark and holding him to ransom at gunpoint.

That would be a Ruger, I believe?

Got to hand it to Wiseau sporting this mask that can only be described as something crossed between Ned Kelly's helmet meets Zodiac. It's a far superior movie villain than that emo, cry-baby, Kylo Ren.

Hmm, isn't it funny how the movie stopped being about autopsy work and more about criminality? (A lot of volume 1 is chucked out of Volume 2.)

The plot is a bit confusing as it started out with Mark bound by manacles and Wiseau pointing a gun at him but now Mark's out in Tucson fleeing with an ATM.

Are they telling a backstory? It's not clarified.

Familicide killer, John List, shows up 'round the 16-minute mark and this guy's a few quid short of a shilling.

Where's Wiseau? Isn't he going to be in volume 2? It's all centered around Mark and this Dushku chick.

I don't understand these flashbacks with Wiseau holding a gun to Mark while he's shackled up.

There's a lack of Tommy Wiseau in Volume 2 and I don't care for the Mark, Dushku, and Uncle Cowboy storyline. (Which takes up three-quarters of the movie.) I came to see Tommy Wiseau, not Mark and Co. Mark and Co are the weak links of Volume 2. Wiseau's character is still a mystery from Volume 1 with a lot unanswered about his background. (It's like Tommy Wiseau wants to remain mysterious in real life and in film.)

I'm not following Volume 2! It's all about Mark, Dushku, and the cowboy fella!

I don't like the direction Volume 2 has taken at all.

It's not as enjoyable as Volume 1.

The whole hostage situation is uninteresting with its sinister approach. Volume 1 had light comedy moments this has turned dark.

Finally - Wiseau shows up with only 20-minutes remaining.

He's wearing this silly spaceman costume and dukes it out with the cowboy.

A 'Karate Kid' reference? Okay.

So, it's revealed that Dushku played Mark all along and is in cahoots with her own uncle - the cowboy.

Believe this? Mark leaves his girlfriend for a man. (She was only a five anyway and a little on the chunky side.)

Volume 2 really struggles to make sense. It tries to be clever but it confuses the viewer for the most part.

Sure, it all comes together at the end where Wiseau only had Mark's best interests at heart and all this running around, and lost money, was a secret investment in a house purchase as a gift for Mark. Even after he attempted to murder Wiseau? Why would Wiseau give that sell-out Mark so many chances?

Something doesn't add up though.

Let me think for a minute.

It's Jackie Brown.

No, no, it's not her. Wrong movie.

What's not adding up, and if you want to get into deep thought about Volume 1 and 2, Wiseau started out as a legitimate businessman, doing a service for the public, yet by Volume 2 he's a cold-blooded murderer who kills without second thought. How's that work? In Volume 1 he was reluctant to participate in the gold tooth Ponzi scheme yet in Volume 2 he's participating in first degree murder.

Talk about an about-face.

Meh.

Sinister action thriller about betrayal

[kluseba · 7/10 · 4 March 2019]

Best F(r)iends: Volume 2 is quite different from the first volume and might actually surprise you a lot. The first film focuses on the difficult friendship between introverted drifter Jon Kortina and eccentric mortician Harvey Lewis who develop a scheme of selling gold fillings from the deceased's teeth to shady underground businessmen. This second movie tells us how the quiet drifter and his manipulative girlfriend leave the mortician for dead and try to run off with the money the scheme has made to start a new life in Colorado.

This second volume has a much steadier pace than the first volume. This is due to the set of unusual characters the couple encounters on its strange road trip. The diversified locations also add some diversified entertainment. The final thirty minutes of the movie are very intense, come around with a series of intriguing plot twists and feature numerous deadly confrontations in breathtaking landscapes.

Despite the differences between the two volumes, the weird tone, unexpected events and strange characters keep them together in a quiet coherent way. The ever-changing second volume itself is kept together by numerous surreal dream sequences that connect both volumes and give more background information about the two lead characters. It's certainly impossible to watch only one of the two volumes or to watch them separately over a longer period of time.

This unique second volume is so intriguingly strange that it could be watched on several occasions in order to uncover more unsettling details and understand all its facets since some questions remain unanswered which gives the viewers some food for thought. This film has the potential to become a genuine cult movie while the first volume is rather an appropriate introduction to the madness that unfolds here. I would recommend the two volumes to fans of television shows with uniquely strange characters such as Fargo and Twin Peaks and obviously to anyone who has watched The Room even though these two volumes are much more clever, coherent and serious than you might expect. Grab a beer, invite a few friends and enjoy these two volumes to the fullest.

The magic is back

[renzo-r-mora · 10/10 · 5 February 2019]

Recaptures the magic of The Room and the unique chemistry between Wiseau and Sestero

Cognitive dissonance: the movie

[kile_katarn · 8/10 · 5 April 2019]

It's unbelievable how much flaws this movie has, from acting to script to editing, but how amazingly it all works together to create such an enjoyable experience. It's not unintentionally bad-turned-amazing. This was an intentionally crafted weird, disjointed, bizzare film, which could please both "The Room" fans and "uninitiated" viewers if they can suspend all their expectations as to what a movie is and delve into the characters, surprisingly complicated plot and overall psychidelic tone and atmosphere of this movie.

P.S. If you're gonna shoot - shoot, don't talk.

Great 2nd part to a great film story.

[Strider-100 · 10/10 · 4 January 2022]

Watched volume 2 of this film and was quite pleased with it. The mystery, murder, and adventure continues with some new characters introduced. Traci (Kristen StephensonPino) and Jon (Greg Sesteros) travel to Arizona with the ATM safe where Harvey had stored the money. They need to find a locksmith to open it. On their trip in Arizona they are pulled over by a suspicious cop who puts them through a tortuous interview before he lets them depart. From there they go to a B&B where the owner is a complete jerk to them. While staying at the B&B we discover the Traci is up to something with someone else via cell phone. Shortly after that, her Uncle Rick Stanton (Rick Edwards) shows up as a high testosterone redneck cowboy jock who loves to intimidate Jon and make sexual suggestions to Traci. Rick Edwards does an excellent job of playing an ex jock redneck cowboy.(On a personal note he should have been the next actor selected to replace Damian Lewis character on BILLIONS to go toe to toe with the Paul Giamatti character of Chuck) Uncle Rick can't seem to open the ATM safe so they decide to hire a locksmith. The locksmith comes out to the ranch to open the safe but when he senses the desperation of Jon and Traci he calls for backup and suddenly Uncle Rick, Jon, and Traci are being held at gunpoint. Vicente, (RJ Cantu) the backup to the locksmith Doc Seagor (George Killingsworth) recognizes Traci as someone who did him wrong years ago and drags her off into the house to kill her. This is when things get really crazy when Traci is about to be killed and is saved by a man dressed up like the outlaw Ned Kelly in a metal helmet and body armor. He shoots Vicente in the back and when Doc Seagor tries to assist Vicente he is killed as well by our Ned Kelly lookalike. Meanwhile Uncle Rick and Jon find the traumatized Traci unharmed but shaken in the bathroom. They go back to the house to try to figure out if they have to fight a drug cartel or some other person who is trying to kill them. Uncle Rick asks Jon to go get some guns out of the garage to help defend but this is where Jon discovers the car that crazy Harvey purchased in part 1. How did it end up at Uncle Rick's in Arizona? Jon confronts Uncle Rick and Uncle Rick pulls a gun on Jon and explains that he and Traci are involved and there intention was to get the money out of the ATM Safe and go to the Caymans. Traci starts to pack for the Caymans as Uncle Rick takes Jon out into the desert to kill him. The funniest line in volume 2 is where Uncle Rick tells Jon, "After you went to sleep last night I was f_ckin your girlfriend so hard I thought I was going to commit a headboard homicide." Uncle Rick is about to shoot and kill Jon but Jon is saved by the Ned Kelly lookalike who kills Rick and it is revealed the Ned Kelly look alike is Harvey. Now Jon thinks Harvey is going to kill him after the event that led to what appeared to be Harvey's death but I was pleasantly surprised by a positive ending for a new Neo Noir movie. Beautifully cinematography in this film and good direction. All the people who worked on this did a fantastic job on such a low budget. Thank you, a very entertaining film.