On F List of Movie Reviews

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Four Friends (1981)

Rate: 5
Viewed: 4/20

4/20: Four Friends is a major disappointment considering it was directed by Arthur Penn.

I was kind of hoping to see something that's along the lines of Return of the Secaucus 7 and The Big Chill, but nope. Now, I can see why I had never heard of this impactless picture.

For starters, Four Friends is bland and too episodic to be put together as a cohesive whole. The cast has no chemistry to speak of. A lot of times, there's zero understanding to the scenes; they just come and go.

Craig Wasson acts goofy throughout. Michael Huddleston and Jim Metzler play nobodies. Jodi Thelen looks to be on the verge of being special but quickly becomes tiresome. As Louie, Reed Birney is the only one who's any good, and the whole thing with his sister is the most interesting part of the film.

All in all, The Missouri Breaks is when Arthur Penn lost his directorial touch permanently, and it shows in Four Friends.

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