Friendsgiving

• Written and Directed by Nicol Paone (Directorial Debut)
• October 23, 2020

A group of friends spend a chaotic Thanksgiving together.

Imagine a film with a thin plot populated with unlikable characters in a script more focused on the sexuality of the characters than on creating an interesting storyand doing anything to develop those characters. Throw in Thanksgiving with the hipster renaming of ‘Friendsgiving’ and you’ve got the movie Friendsgiving.

There are many films set during the holidays where things get out of control. While thin, it is an easy way to make something entertaining as events spin out of control. Some focus on one or two individuals while others like here toss together a large group of people. But they usually have a spiraling series of ludicrous events. Things start simple and get out of control. No so much here. We get much more of the characters endlessly complaining about their perceived problems or envious of others in the group. 

Most importantly despite the title these people when you think about it are not really friends. They get together and they appear to try to hang out and travel in the same circles, but I think more often than not they seem to barely like each other. They do not seem to really know each other, and some do not want their supposed friends around.

The main relationship here is that of Molly (Malin Åkerman) and Abby (Kat Dennings) who have been close friends for years. Intended or not by the writer they have a level of anger and perhaps envy towards each other along with some resentment. You watch the movie and it all comes out as part of the finale before they make up and have a Kumbaya moment.

Of our two main characters Molly is bisexual but that really doesn’t seem to play in anything too much other than a few mentions of her and Abby having had a relationship in the past. Abby however has remained in the closet for 29 years. That there is kind of important as it is something upsetting to Molly and occasionally in unimportant to the plot facetime calls with her relatives alternately ignorant of and well aware of her sexuality.

Abby has broken up for some poorly defined reason with some woman named Maeve. Apparently Maeve was Abby’s whole world but why? It comes out fairly early in the movie that Maeve for whatever reason got upset and shaved her head. This sounds like a clear sign of abuse but that gets kind of forgotten about. I am talking about the abuse as the head shaving is the only mention of anything. By the end of the movie she comes to the realization that Maeve never really loved her and it’s all part of the Kumbaya moment between her and Molly.

In Friendsgiving the character of Molly is a major Hollywood celebrity and has just finished up a hit movie. She’s been left by her husband whose name escapes me. Or maybe they never gave him one. Her going through a divorce is a major part of the plot but I am hard-pressed to remember her ex-husband’s name. I’m not even sure why they divorced beyond Molly essentially being an ornament or decoration for him. 

Molly and Abby are rather indistinguishable in the story. The more I think about them the more I am having trouble remembering which did/said what. And the same can be said for almost all the individuals presented here. They are more caricatures than characters. In a comedy that is fine for supporting characters but not ones that are the focus of the narrative.

I feel even calling this a comedy is a bit of stretch. That it was written and directed by a purported comedian makes it all a bit worse. The basics for something good are there but would be writer/director/comedian Nicol Paone does nothing with that and spends much of the time focusing on sexuality at the expense of telling a funny or even a mildly amusing story.

Drugs. Alcohol. Surprise guests. Cougar mom. The seeds are all there for a predictable yet entertaining seasonal comedy but nothing much gets done with it. The edibles introduced into the story are there so Abby can have a hallucination involving her Fairy Gay Mothers (Wanda Sykes, Margaret Cho and Fortune Feimster) and kiss Lauren (Aisha Tyler) so Lauren’s kid can walk in and her husband can be upset he did not get to watch. The surprise guests disappear from the film.

Molly’s mom (Jane Seymour) drinks a lot but is just there to be disinterested in things and have no bearing on much of anything. The same can be said of all the characters. Molly and Abby are the focus of things but everybody else they introduce including Molly’s rebound are inconsequential and exist to fill time but not contribute to the narrative.

Nobody’s funny enough or quirky enough or entertaining enough for you to root for them or care about what happens to them. These are all the most annoying people or most superficial people you can find. And the finale involving Molly’s baby who is more an afterthought in the story is just “Meh.” There is no emotion or humor or intensity to it. It is just there because all stories need to end.

Friendsgiving is ultimately not worth your time. The story and its execution are mediocre at its best and the characters are completely unlikable. Give this absolutely no consideration otherwise you will regret losing those 95 minutes you can never get back.