Make Friends With One of These Beloved Films

Years ago, the famed theologian Saint Thomas Aquinas observed, “Friendship is the source of the greatest pleasures, and without friends even the most agreeable pursuits become tedious.” That truth is observed during National Friendship Day, this upcoming August 4.

So to celebrate that essential relationship, we’re showcasing five films that highlight friendships of all shapes and sizes.

The Motorcycle Diaries

In Walter Salles’ The Motorcycle Diaries, two young friends—Ernesto Guevara (Gael García Bernal) and Alberto Granado (Rodrigo de la Serna)—embark on a journey through South America that changed their lives, if not altered the course of history. Starting in Buenos Aires, the two traveled by motorcycle through Chile and Peru, ending up in Venezuela, learning from the people they met along the way. While Ernesto would go on to become the world-famous Che Guevara, the film recounts a journey in which, writes USA Today, we are “laughing at their mishaps or savoring the simple camaraderie between the two friends.” Empire writes, “Travelogue, biography, tender portrait of friendship—the film is strong in all these areas, but excels in fusing them into an affecting whole.”

Watch The Motorcycle Diaries now on Apple TV or Amazon.

Hot Fuzz

In Edgar Wright’s Hot Fuzz, the classic buddy-cop movie becomes a hilarious tale of friendship. When the alpha detective Nick Angel (Simon Pegg) is assigned to the bucolic village of Sanford, he’s partnered with Danny Butterman (Nick Frost), a bumbling rookie whose most intense brush with crime enforcement to date has been watching DVDs of Hollywood action flicks. However, when the partners discover this picture-perfect hamlet is a nest of evil, they also learn how much they need each other to clean it up. Slate writes, “Ridiculous as Angel and Danny are, we truly care about their budding friendship—not least because of the chemistry between Pegg and his real-life buddy Nick Frost, who riff off each other like old vaudevillians.”

Watch Hot Fuzz now on Apple TV or Amazon.

A Monster Calls

Adapted from Patrick Ness’ popular novel, J. A. Bayona’s A Monster Calls weaves together elements of fairy tales, family melodrama, and fantastic creatures to tell the story of the relationship between a young man, Conor (Lewis MacDougall), and an ancient tree (voiced by Liam Neeson), which comes to his rescue. Bullied at school, overwhelmed by his critically ill mother (Felicity Jones), and hamstrung by his controlling grandmother (Sigourney Weaver), Conor summons a tree creature. As The Playlist explains, “The Monster is all he has at the moment to help him make sense of his world that is becoming more difficult to navigate and understand.” However fantastic, the monster proves a real friend. Consequence writes, “Entertaining, tonally impeccable, and heartbreaking, this is a monster movie with a very human heart.”

Watch A Monster Calls now on Apple TV or Amazon.

Victoria & Abdul

Stephen Frears’ Victoria & Abdul brings to light one of the most intriguing friendships in history. While celebrating her Golden Jubilee in 1887, Queen Victoria (Judi Dench) meets Abdul Karim (Ali Fazal), a young clerk who has traveled from India to present Her Majesty a commemorative coin. Of different ages and from different cultures, the two provide an unexpected and much-needed consolation to each other. “Victoria & Abdul is a heartwarming tale of the love between two of the most unlikely of friends, reminding us that we can learn from one another, despite our cultural differences,” writes We Live Entertainment.

Watch Victoria & Abdul now on Apple TV or Amazon.

Book Club: The Next Chapter

In Bill Holderman’s Book Club: The Next Chapter, the four old friends who met regularly to gossip about books and boyfriends while sipping chardonnay in the 2018 hit Book Club get ready for a new adventure. Diane (Diane Keaton), Sharon (Candice Bergen), and Carol (Mary Steenburgen) decide to throw Vivian (Jane Fonda) a jet-setting bachelorette party. As the four women traipse through Rome, Venice, and Tuscany, they reaffirm the bond that made them friends to begin with. And what’s true for the characters is also true for the actresses who play them. “We are friends, we care for each other and we tell each other the truth, most of the time,” Fonda told The Peterborough Examiner. The movie’s fun-loving friendships might, as Collider suggests, “leave audiences ready to grab their gal pals and set off on an adventure to Italy.”

Watch Book Club: The Next Chapter now on Apple TV or Amazon.