Drinking Buddies (2013)

We just watched Drinking Buddies and we are still perplexed. I cannot agree with the reviews that rate this movie a 9 or even a 10 out of ten. I didn't know until I read one of the reviews that the dialogs were improvised. I should have known, because most of them were just awful. There is a reason that people like Hitchcock spent up to 5 months to create the script and the dialog, because without proper words the interactions seems to be totally useless. I still think that all the main characters were played by good actors, but a good actor is not necessarily a good improviser. I like independent movies and will continue to watch them, but next time I will read some reviews first. I give 3 out of ten, because the basic idea for the movie was good, just the realization was very amateurish.

Fmovies: Drinking Buddies (2013)

** (out of 4)

Best friends Kate (Olivia Wilde) and Luke (Jake Johnson) spend all their time at work together and they often go out drinking afterwards. This is fine even though both are involved with other people but soon when the four go on a weekend trip things get a tad bit more complicated. Director Joe Swanberg's latest film is one I really wanted to watch but as the film went along I couldn't help but start to dislike all of the characters more and more. Whenever you're watching a film like this it's important that you can enjoy spending time with the characters because for 90-minutes you're basically just watching them get drunk and talk. In fact, there's a lot of talking in this movie and I didn't find a single line of it all that interested. There are many reasons for this but one of the biggest is that the film is pretty predictable right down to the final scene, which I must admit made me laugh because of how obvious it was. Another problem is like I said, the characters are all just so boring and uninteresting that you really don't care about what they're feeling, thinking or doing. This is especially true for the Kate character who never really makes too much sense and I'd say the Luke character is just as dumb. I'm really not sure what type of point or message the director was trying to make with these characters but they just come across as rather idiotic and lifeless. The performances are the one thing that helps keep the film interesting. Wilde is always good no matter what she's doing. Johnson was believable in his part. Anna Kendrick was good in the role of the girlfriend but the screenplay certainly did her character no favors. Ron Livingston played the boyfriend and again, the screenplay didn't do much for him. DRINKING BUDDIES will probably find a cult crowd out there who connects with these people but I'd recommend going out drinking with your own buddies instead of watching this.

From the threadbare 'Hannah takes the Stairs' to the layered, clever 'Alexander the Last', the quality of Joe Swanberg's films has traditionally been erratic. 'Drinking Buddies' falls somewhere in the upper half of his range as it portrays how a couple of brewery co-workers deal with mutual sexual attraction while engaged in relationships with other partners. Kate and Luke use their love of beer as an excuse to hang out while concealing their amorous agenda and ambivalence in an alcoholic haze. The improvised dialog does deliver some amusing moments, but there are too many repetitive exchanges which dissipate the film's energy.

The two lead actors create credible characters, but Swanberg doesn't give them anywhere particularly interesting to go, and there doesn't appear to be anything of great value at stake. Kate and Luke's Romeo and Juliette saga turns into a circular song-and-dance routine, until their friendship becomes infected by frustration, leading to dishonesty and irritability. The concept is intriguing, but the film turns into an effective endorsement of sobriety. Swanberg has shown he can do better than this, and the end titles arrive just in time.

Drinking Buddies fmovies. When I began to watch this movie a expected a romantic, funny movie. Much because that's how they advertise it. This, however, is not a romantic movie and is far from comedy as well. Not a single thing is funny in this movie. I've been to funerals that were funnier than this. It's also not a romantic movie, even though the main story (and only story for that matter) has something to do with romance. It's not even a real drama movie for characters are poorly written - what you see is what you get and you don't get much. We see ordinary people in ordinary situations portrayed in such a way that it's just boring - plain BORING. The story did have a potential but everything they could blow they blew. Acting is poor as well for most of the cast, but I guess you cannot do much better with such a script.

We were supposed to feel something going on between the characters but the only thing I felt while watching this movie was an unbearable wish to turn it off and watch something else. I did just that half way through the movie and never looked back.

When I was watching, I was expecting and worried at the same time that this movie would wind up the same way as the 1000 movies I have already seen about courtship and the drama and weak constructions of a relationship that follows that in a movie.

But this movie doesn't have any of the routine non-sense that other movies have and the ending could not have been better.

I know all the negative reviews preceding this, but they have not seen all the boring movies which always have the same ending. I 'm really happy that this movie doesn't end like that.

The director has done a great job in making the movie as lively as possible. In this movie, I felt like the actors were was not even acting, It felt so real rather than the cliché crap we see on other movies.

I saw this movie at the Indianapolis International Film Festival and it exceeded my expectations, partially because of the negative review beside this one.

The plot of Drinking Buddies is simple: two close co-workers - both already in relationships - struggle with their feelings toward one another. This is a relatable concept for many of us, and those of us who have been in this situation understand just how complicated it can get.

The other reviewer claims that "nothing happens between the main characters," and I would argue that point. Lots of things happen between the main characters and what these things most close resemble is real life. This film is thoughtful, funny, heartbreaking and totally charming.