Less a narrative feature than an impressionistic work of art, Jia Zhangke distills the past twenty years of his life through the perspective of Qiaoqiao (Zhao Tao) in his latest film, Caught by the Tides. The only “newly” shot portion for the movie occurs during its final half, set in 2022 during the COVID-19 pandemic, as Qiaoqiao reunites with her former lover, Bin (Li Zhubin), for the first time since their separation. What precedes this section is a non-linear assemblage of footage shot by Jia, either for his past films, such as Still Life, Ash is Purest White, and Unknown Pleasures, or footage he kept for himself until today. 

Watching such a movie feels truly daring, as Jia moves away from his linear works into associative territory, linking one piece of shot-on-video footage with another, completely different, celluloid image. The most impressive moment occurs near its end, as the movie cuts from a top-down shot of a ballroom, where a group of people dance during the pandemic, to a fish-eyed digital zoom of a supermarket CCTV camera, first honing in on a pack of oranges, then clumsily careening around the space, desperately looking for an image to focus on. The camera follows Bin inside the market as he reunites with Qiaoqiao. From there, pure cinema occurs. 

Bin reunites with Qiaoqiao and, despite the face masks they are wearing, the two immediately recognize each other’s eyes. Jia lingers on their masked faces for a bit before Bin removes it, to the shock of Qiaoqiao, still unable to process that he’s in front of him, after so many years apart. It’s one of the most potent images in post-COVID filmmaking, where the director is able to find purpose in the sanitary limitations of the era, showing us that connections were still possible, despite the tragic situation the characters were living in.  

Many filmmakers have tried to express the COVID-19 era in film, but have failed to draw anything meaningful out of it. The only artist who got something out of the anxieties such an event drew was Steven Soderbergh when he made his paranoia thriller KIMI in 2022. Radu Jude also tried to say something out of such an event with his unofficial duology Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn and Do Not Expect Too Much from the End of the World (both are masterpieces, by the way), but no filmmaker expressed dramatic power the way Jia does in this particular section with Caught by the Tides, let alone letting the silences of his (masked) actors speak in ways that words cannot. 

Zhao Tao’s performance is entirely silent, barring a section taken from Unknown Pleasures where the protagonist sings. But there isn’t a spoken word uttered by Qiaoqiao throughout the entire movie, and Jia lets us sit with her in silence, contemplating her future and the choices she has made that ultimately lead her to where she is during the pandemic. Even her exchange with Bin, preceding their breakup, is told through intertitles, with only their looks as the point of reference to make us feel their emotions. To some, that may be an alienating way to watch a movie, especially when Jia flows from one scene to the next without tangible linearity, a massive departure from what he is usually known for. 

However, there’s something so emotionally stirring in Zhao Tao’s portrayal of Qiaoqiao, whether in the repurposed footage from Jia’s past films or what was shot for this movie, that makes the experience so worthwhile. The best parts of acting are conveying everything you want to say without having the need to say anything. Few actors can accomplish this feat well and express a litany of emotions like this, yet Zhao Tao does it so effortlessly. Her forced smile hides feelings she doesn’t want to put forward, even though we can clearly read them. Qiaoqiao isn’t happy, and her current trajectory ensures she won’t find the peace she wants. 

It’s only during an interaction with a robot, in one of the year’s most moving exchanges, that we get to see the real Qiaoqiao, who warms up and happily smiles, for the first time, after the machine tells her, “Mother Teresa once said, if you love until it hurts…there can be no more hurt, only more love.” It’s the first occasion where we see her feel something, and the rest of the film, where Qiaoqiao ties up all of her past loose ends, gives her the courage to do what she needs to do to move on. It’s simultaneously heartbreaking and profoundly affecting, even if Jia’s associations sometimes lose their meaning, particularly in the movie’s midsection. 

That said, even if Caught by the Tides sags and loses its intent in a few places, Jia Zhangke knows he has to anchor his decades-spanning emotional journey through the eyes of his wife and creative partner, Zhao Tao. It’s through those sullen, devastating looks that pierce the artifice of cinema and touch us so profoundly that we’re ultimately moved by this daring proposition from one of China’s greatest formalists, caught in the tides of the past and present, and offering us no solutions for a future that doesn’t look as promising as it might have been envisioned, by Qiaoqiao, or society itself…

SCORE: ★★★1/2

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Director: Andrew DeYoung
Writer: Andrew DeYoung
Stars: Tim Robinson, Paul Rudd, Kate Mara

Synopsis: A suburban dad falls hard for his charismatic new neighbor.

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I don’t think it would be unfair to say that the expectation of Friendship is that this would be a feature length I Think You Should Leave sketch. Tim Robinson has a unique style of humor that is strictly his own and while it may not work for everyone, it definitely works for me. Starting off, the theater was laughing at every little thing Robinson was doing on screen. However, as the film went on, a collective anxiety and unnerved feeling washed across the theater. Friendship definitely lives up to the expectation that I described before, but what I didn’t expect was something so nightmarish and, to put it bluntly, depressing. Don’t get me wrong, it’s hilarious, but by the time the credits roll I was wiped out.

Craig Waterman (Robinson) is a simple man that does very little outside of his day-to-day work. He is a married man with a son in high school, he gets a new neighbor that he quickly befriends, and frequently talks about “the new Marvel.” What sets him apart from the other characters in Friendship is he speaks almost exclusively in awkward jokes – common fare for his characters in I Think You Should Leave. But as the film progresses and he opens himself up more, it’s clear he is afflicted with arrested social development as he makes off putting comments and does bizarre things like shoving a bar of soap in his mouth as a joke (which does not land). 

What makes I Think You Should Leave likely to be rewatchable is that everyone in each bit is in on the joke to some degree. In I Think You Should Leave you’re being transported to some bizarre other world where the inhabitants are mild mannered individuals and one or two characters that perpetuate and drive a bit. In Friendship, if you remove Tim Robinson, it is a deathly serious movie. No one is feeding into a bit outside of him. The coverage of topics in Friendship include cancer, marital collapse, and a situation involving a missing person. I know the goal, even in the I Think You Should Leave bits, is to make the viewer cringe, but at times Friendship becomes a little suffocating.

Furthermore, Tim Robinson’s character he does – which he does for all of his comedy – works in small doses. On Saturday Night Live and I Think You Should Leave you’re given about 5 minutes, max, of this type of character. However, this type of character in a feature film is a little too much by the end. Each bad decision or off putting comment Craig would make compounds in the viewer. While I’m not entirely averse to the ‘cringe’ comedy, by the time the 100 minute runtime is up I was thoroughly exhausted.

With these things in mind, I weirdly found Friendship to be affecting. While I don’t directly identify with the Craig Waterman character or the things that he does, that feeling of longing was extremely palpable. Connecting with people is incredibly difficult, I wanted to see Craig win even if I wouldn’t want to be friends with him personally. And anytime he didn’t win (which is frequent in Friendship), I couldn’t help but feel a little sad. Life is weird how we’re just thrown into things and there’s a certain socially acceptable, binary way of living while we’re all extremely different from one another and offer completely different things to each other.

To that extent, even if there were elements of Friendship I found exhausting, the other elements elevated it to the same, yet opposite, levels. There was a cohesion to this film that is rare to find in films from sketch comedy regulars. For example, while I love films like Stepbrothers, Wayne’s World, or Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping, the bits in those movies act as a way to get laughs rather than something that coexists with the world in their respective films. In Friendship you find a collection of bits that feels like it belongs to the world being built. The one bit I’ll mention, as to not spoil anything, is the “Marvel” bit that they’ve already pushed in their marketing. Once the “Marvel” is introduced it is integrated effectively and not seen as just a one-off. There’s a particular moment involving a client meeting where the bit isn’t directly referenced but is alluded to and the pay off is incredible.

Rarely does a film come around where I feel so starkly conflicted about it. And even with that, I really want to see it again. If you’re not a fan of the Tim Robinson style of comedy, this is probably the last thing you should consider if you’re looking to change that. But if you’re already a fan, this is a four course meal and then some. This film is nuclear levels of hilarious and simultaneously the worst trip imaginable. Friendship absolutely rules and should be seen in the largest and most uncomfortably crowded room imaginable. Excited to tell my therapist about this film!

Grade: C+

Story: Kyrah and Issac, former elite operatives turned lovers, go on the run with their son after their old team puts a bounty on their heads. Hunted by their ex-boss Jack Cinder, they must fight to protect their family and confront their past.

Review: ‘Shadow Force’ is a film that feels all too familiar, offering little new within its overdone premise. It’s a standard action thriller that doesn’t bother to break any molds. The plot takes too many liberties, never properly explaining key elements, and leaves the audience to fill in the gaps. While the action sequences may keep you engaged momentarily, the film quickly loses its grip, leaving you indifferent to what’s happening on screen. Despite the high stakes and potential for a gripping story, the lack of depth makes it a forgettable experience.

The plot centers on Kyrah Owens (Kerry Washington) and Issac Saar (Omar Sy), two former elite operatives who worked for a covert unit called Shadow Force. When they fall in love and have a child, they decide to leave their violent world behind to protect their son. However, their past catches up with them when Isaac’s identity is revealed while saving their son during a bank robbery. Once their former boss, Jack Cinder (Mark Strong), discovers they are alive, he places a bounty on their heads and sends a team of skilled assassins to kill them. The couple, forced to go on the run, must rely on their instincts and combat skills to survive. From Mexico to Spain to Bolivia, the action-packed journey unfolds with high-speed chases and near-death encounters.

The film suffers from a lack of clarity, particularly when it comes to its central premise. The audience is never truly given an understanding of what Shadow Force is or what Kyrah and Isaac have been doing before the events of the film. If their crime is simply falling in love and wanting to raise a family, it feels like a flimsy excuse for a plot. While the action sequences are thrilling, the narrative leaves much to be desired. The few moments of warmth, especially between Kyrah, Issac, and their son Ky, bring a brief sense of emotional connection. Issac’s use of French adds an interesting layer to his character, giving a natural, authentic feel to the portrayal, but these moments are overshadowed by a confusing and shallow storyline.

Kerry Washington’s performance is a major letdown, especially when compared to her past work. Her portrayal feels uninspired and flat, lacking the depth and intensity needed for such a high-stakes role. It’s hard to believe this is the same actress who delivered a brilliant performance in her previous film ‘The Six Triple Eight.’ Mark Strong, on the other hand, brings a sense of menace and gravitas to the character of Jack Cinder, proving to be a strong presence in his role as the antagonist. But it’s Omar Sy who stands out in this film. Despite being French, Sy is perfectly at ease in an English-language film, delivering a performance that balances both toughness and warmth effortlessly. His character feels real, and his natural charisma elevates the film, making him the one redeeming aspect.

‘Shadow Force’ never fully capitalizes on the potential its premise offers. It stays on the surface level, failing to dive deeper into its characters or plot. While it delivers on action, it never goes the extra mile, and in the end, it remains a forgettable, average film.