Lillian Likes… “Unlikely Friends”
***This review may contain spoilers***
“Unlikely Friends” is a short film about a homeless man and a career woman from different walks of life, who realize that they have much more in common than they thought.
The film opens with a disheveled older man (John McDonnell) shuffling into view in a park. He notices a young woman (Amy Harber) sitting alone on a park bench eating her lunch. The man tentatively sits down at the other end of the long bench, studying the woman closely, then attempts to make conversation with her.
Lillian Likes…The way that actress Amy Harber genuinely looks uncomfortable with the man talking to her. She doesn’t overplay this, however. Rather this emotion simmers just below the surface so as not to appear impolite to the stranger.
Lillian Likes…McDonnell’s brilliant delivery of the line, “Oh. Forget I said anything,” in response to the woman politely telling him that she is known as an “independent woman.” I laughed out loud on this line, as it came across as this gentleman perceived the woman as a feminist, and wanted to back off for fear he might get chewed out. This may or may not be what the writer and the actor were intending, but either way, it worked.
Lillian Likes…The way the music becomes suspenseful when the man rummages for something in his pocket, and the woman gets visibly nervous, only to be relieved that it is just a piece of paper.
The man tries to engage the woman in conversation, to which she politely keeps to herself. This kindly older gentleman eventually wears her down with his eagerness to make a human connection and we learn that she feels as ostracized as he does.
As each of the characters open up about how people judge them without ever getting to know them, they come to the mutual realization that they have more in common than they ever imagined.
Lillian Likes…McDonnell’s performance of becoming defensive upon being asked essentially how he got to where he is (being homeless).
Lillian Likes…The way that actress Harber portrays being truly apologetic when she realizes she touched a nerve asking the man how he got to be homeless.
The film closes with the two parting ways, but not before telling each other their names.
Lillian Likes…When the man refuses charity from the woman punctuating it with the line “I’m better off than I look,” before strutting off.
“Unlikely Friends” is a simple, but elegant story that touches the audience and delivers the age-old message of: “Don’t judge a book by its cover.”
Lillian Likes…“Unlikely Friends”
Written & directed by Walter Jakubowski
Produced by Walter Jakubowski and Amy Harber
Edited by Lexi Wisniewski
Starring: John McDonnell and Amy Harber
Be sure to check out the film here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QQ1SNxTH9s
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