Almost Friends
- Romessa Nadeem
- Dec 5, 2017
- 3 min read
Rating 5/10
Directed by Jake Goldberger
Starring
Freddie Highmore as Charlie
Odeya Rush as Amber
Almost Friends is one of those movies that wants to deal with serious coming-of-age topics without creating too much of a fuss about it. We get to observe a little bit of everything; awkward crushes, love triangles, depression, teenage pregnancy, familial estrangement, loss of ambition, identity crises etc. If that sounds like a lot of ground to be covered in one lightweight romantic comedy, that’s because it is, and it shows here.
We’re introduced to shy awkward Charlie, an aspiring chef who has very little drive and motivation (due to problems explained later) He falls for a local barista, Amber, who happens to be in a relationship. Her boyfriend is a total jock named Brad who breathes exercise and is more devoted to his regime than his girlfriend. So what kind of person is he? Who cares? The fact that he’s a buff jock is his only description and an ultimate testament to his disposability.
Despite her relationship with totally-ripped-muscle-guy (his name doesn’t even matter at this point) she becomes infatuated with Charlie as he helps her mostly drunk cousin, Jack, find work at the cinema he’s worked at for far too long. Charlie’s estranged crook of a father also returns to his son’s life, his reliability a constant (and needed) point of tension.
And so Charlie’s journey begins at the coffee shop Amber works at, his penchant for saying the wrong thing at the right time earning him her attention. Initially it doesn’t seem like this character has any charm past the typical “adorkably awkward nice guy” trope we’ve seen in movies like Paper Towns or I Love You, Beth Cooper. But Highmore works subtle nuances into his performance, giving Charlie much needed depth. The rest of the cast delivers admirably, with Charlie’s best friend Ben woefully underused.
There are flashes of genuine sincerity and depth scattered throughout the film. Charlie explains why he’s been stuck working in a cinema to Amber and it’s a tragic story told within the right context. Ben achieves an odd little victory only to be celebrating alone, and it’s a sad moment. Actors Highmore and Rush manage brief sparks in their conversations and they can be charming and delicate.
Yet there are times of heavy handed dialogue, and little urgency. The script doesn’t particularly stand out. Nothing ever feels quite substantial and the direction is tolerable at best and ridiculous at worst. One heated conversation between Amber and her macho track star boyfriend toward the end is shot like it’s part of a spoof film. We’re also told Charlie has depression by the characters but because we aren’t fully shown it, it lacks meaning.
If you’ve seen any movie ever, you’ll be able to tell where the plot is going from a mile away. It’s all just too inoffensive to stick out, too thematically cluttered to be impactful and too familiar to be novel. Almost Friends is a pleasant enough watch but ultimately forgettable and not completely worthwhile.
If you want to check out more movies like Almost Friends, give 2013’s The Spectacular Now a watch; a moving coming-of-age film about a high school senior whose views on life begin to shift as he approaches graduation.
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