The Friend has premiered at two film festivals so far (Telluride and Toronto). Here are snippets what critics are saying….
“Bringing grief back down to earth, Scott McGehee and David Siegel’s eponymous adaptation of Sigrid Nunez’s novel The Friend is a wise and witty, though somewhat staid, study in loss and companionship. Set in New York’s literary scene, it features—I say this without a hair of hyperbole—one of the greatest nonhuman performances in cinema history. Revered author Walter (Bill Murray) dies, leaving his beloved Great Dane, Apollo (the amazing Bing), in the care of old friend Iris (Naomi Watts). Apollo is a huge imposition on Iris, in part because her Manhattan apartment building doesn’t allow pets, but the pooch entered Walter’s life with uncanny kismet and goes on to ingratiate himself into Iris’s busy existence as a kind of canine embodiment of Walter’s irascible spirit. It sounds corny, and maybe it is corny. But McGehee and Siegel handle each turn with clear-eyed, unpretentious elegance, while Bing’s Apollo, who cannot understand that Walter isn’t coming back, conveys a spectrum of emotions many human actors can only aspire to.”
— By José Teodoro – Film Comment – September 23, 2024
“It turns out that 2024 is an extraordinary year for dog movies – more than a few favorites. After enjoying three others that I’ve raved about throughout the year (Black Dog, Dog on Trial, Seeking Haven for Mr. Rambo) I’ve found my favorite dog movie of 2024 – The Friend. Adapted from the bestselling novel of the same name written by Sigrid Nunez, this film is a much more profound and soulful story of a woman’s life changing thanks to a big dog. In fact, the dog really is the star of the show – a massive, cuddle bug Great Dane pooch named Apollo (in real life Bing)….
Among the many aspects of The Friend that deserve acclaim, it is one of the best films to ever star a gigantic Great Dane doggo. Big dogs are not usually the stars of many dog movies (give or take a few others like The Sandlot, Turner & Hooch, Beethoven). It made me so happy every time Apollo (or Bing) was in the scene. I wanted to leap into the screen and cuddle him every time. His performance is immaculate, an example of a dog actually understanding the role and nailing it every shot. Somehow. What a champion. His presence and his majesty and his love are important in every last moment of this story. Those saying this film isn’t really about the dog are wrong – it is entirely about the dog and how he changes her.”
— By Alex Billington – First Showing – September 9, 2024
“McGehee and Siegel (The Deep End, What Maisie Knew) have crafted a wonderfully human, quintessential New York movie that makes you realize Hollywood so rarely does this kind of thing anymore — so when you see it, you know it, and you treasure the fact these are recognizable human beings we can relate to. That goes especially for Iris, a flustered woman but a good person trying to make the best of this situation, for both her and Apollo. Watts is consistently fine in just about everything but here has one of the best roles of her career, never going over the top but subtly perfect in every way as she also has to deal with her own loss. She also narrates the story and at one point muses about other dog movies like Old Yeller where the four-legged star dies, and she asks why that has to be the case. She probably has the best screen leading male she has ever worked with in Apollo, a remarkable and heartfelt performance that ranks with the great screen dog portrayals of all time. Bing, a non-pro who turned up in a casting search, plays him, and his own morose heartbreak will also break yours. Big shout-out to trainer/owner Bev Klingensmith and trainer Bill Berloni. Give this dog an Oscar.“
— By Pete Hammond – Deadline – Aug 30, 2024
“There’s no way to play this part cool: for the entire second half of David Siegel and Scott McGehee’s “The Friend,” this critic was reduced to a blubbering, sobbing, heaving mess, clutching damp paper towels and alternating between choking and laughing. While the filmmaking pair’s latest might sound squarely aimed at Naomi Watts super-fans and intense animal people, what they actually present in “The Friend” isn’t so very niche at all: instead, it’s the sort of witty, wise, and warm character study we seem to be running out of these days. And that’s just when it comes to its standout dog star, the Great Dane (emphasis on great) Bing.”
— By Kate Erbland – Indiewire – Aug 31, 2024
“Dog movies are a regular fixture of the cinematic firmament, but it’s rare for one to so invest itself in its central animal without trying to anthropomorphize it, to enter its mind and give it a voice. Apollo, played by a dog named Bing who may be the best dog actor I’ve ever come across, carries the film without having to be anything other than what he is.“
— By Bilge Ebiri – Vulture – Oct 9, 2024
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