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Sep 18, 2025 Web Exclusive By Zachary Lee Photography by Blu-ray.com

A24 marketed director Andrew DeYoung’s Friendship with the cheeky tagline “Men shouldn’t have friends.” It was a clever way to tie the film to the larger conversation around the male loneliness epidemic. While the film is positioned as a laugh-a-minute comedy, DeYoung’s film is much more somber, spiritual and serious than one would think when seeing its two leads, comedic titans like Paul Rudd and Tim Robinson. After enjoying a healthy festival circuit (it premiered at TIFF in 2024 before playing 2025 festivals such as SXSW and the Chicago Critics Film Festival), the film arrives in Blu-ray form, loaded with features that accentuate both its humorous and thoughtful modes. It may not make for comfortable viewing, but its coarser elements go down easier thanks to the ultimately touching heart.

Robinson (in his first role as a leading man) plays Craig Waterman, a suburbanite whose work involves creating “habit-forming” apps that keep people more addicted to their phones than they already are. On the surface, there’s a level of superficial contentment; in reality, Craig is a stranger in his own home. His wife, Tami (Kate Mara), and son, Steven (Jack Dylan Grazer), are closer to each other than to him (this is exemplified in a humorous moment where the two kiss on the lips in front of an exasperated Craig). The highs and lows of Craig’s life all revolve around the artificial occurrences of corporations. He’s always excited to see “the new Marvel” movie (pointedly, there are never any titles named, which feeds into the ways those films have gelled into uniformity) and he always gets excited when Ocean View Dining (the place he exclusively shops) releases a new clothing catalogue because he can finally update his wardrobe.

Craig’s closed-circuit life is disrupted when he meets Austin (Paul Rudd), a newcomer to town who has taken up a job as the local weatherman. Disarmed by Austin’s effortless cool and suavity, Craig begins to do everything he can to be on Austin’s good side. As Austin rebuffs his zeal, the two become dangerously more entwined.

There’s a drearyness to how DeYoung and cinematographer Andy Rydzewski shoot the whole affair; whereas most comedies that come to mind are effervescent to a saccharine degree, the whole palette of Craig and Austin’s town is muted. Wide shots capture the emptiness of the suburbs amidst the opulence; it always feels like something may creep out of the corners of the frame at a given moment. Composer Keegan DeWitt’s lo-fi score chills in its subtlety. Friendship is simply constructed unlike other comedies, and you can clearly witness that through this Blu-ray presentation, which preserves those greys and darks.

It’s evident that DeYoung and his collaborators had more on their minds than just delivering laughs, and it makes listening to the commentary with DeYoung, Rydzewski, and Connor O’Malley (who appears in a couple scene-stealing moments) all the more fascinating as you hear them break down their process and intention. More on O’Malley: There’s a pivotal sequence where Robinson and he have a verbal sparring match (a stand-up comedian’s dream). That sequence has been extended to twelve glorious minutes. While it’s understandable that the scene was cut, it’s still fascinating to see these two titans of comedy go at it and play off each other’s performances. There’s also an extended Q&A with actor Eric Rahill, Rudd, Robinson, and DeYoung, where they discuss the film’s themes in further detail.

I first saw the film at SXSW earlier this year, and it’s haunted me ever since. While it may be tempting to think of ourselves as more connected, street smart, and socially aware than Craig, so many of us connect the idea of a “good life” with the larger market forces around us. Craig’s insularity is terrifying precisely because it is prevalent. It’s far easier to be on cruise control and accept the vision of flourishing that the world tells us is good; many can spend their whole lives living incomplete lives. Perhaps that’s the gift of true friendship – it reminds us that it’s never too late to dream of better. If anything, Friendship is worth the watch, whether in the theater or through purchasing this Blu-ray, for that very reminder.

(shop.a24films.com/products/friendship-blu-ray)