Your Friends & Neighbors (1998)
75%RT Audience Score: 64%
Awards & Nominations: 2 wins & 4 nominations
Though it may strike some viewers as cold and unpleasant, Neil LaBute’s Your Friends & Neighbors is an incisive critique of sexual politics wrapped up in a scathing black comedy
Your Friends and Neighbors is a movie that will make you feel like you need a shower after watching it. But in a good way! It’s intense, uncomfortable, and unflinching, but you won’t be able to look away. The conversations are so well-written that you’ll feel like you’re eavesdropping on real people. The entire ensemble is fantastic, but Catherine Keener steals the show. It’s a daring composition that dissects sexual politics and the impact of consumerist values on the North American middle class. If you can handle it, Your Friends and Neighbors is a movie that you won’t forget.
Production Company(ies)
Element Pictures, Film 4 Film Nation Entertainment,
Distributor
Gramercy Pictures
Release Type
Filming Location(s)
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for graphic sexual dialogue, strong sexuality and language
Year of Release
1998
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby
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Aspect ratio:NA
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Runtime:1h 39m
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Language(s):
-
Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Aug 19, 1998 Original
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 24, 2004
Genre(s)
Lgbtq+
Keyword(s)
starring Aaron Eckhart, Amy Brenneman, Ben Stiller, Catherine Keener, Nastassja Kinski, Jason Patric, directed by Neil LaBute, written by Neil LaBute, LGBTQ+, infidelity, deception, sexual politics, black comedy, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Lisa Schwarzbaum, Emanuel Levy, John Haslett Cuff, Susan Stark, Peter Travers, Marjorie Baumgarten, Rob Gonsalves, Robin Clifford, Judith Egerton, Nick Davis, James Rocchi, Margaret A McGurk, R rating, produced by Jason Patric, Steve Golin, Gramercy Pictures, Surround sound, Dolby Digital, Dolby, Scope (2.35:1), adultery, art-gallery assistant, callous doctor, theater professor, writer, businessman, unhappy, unsatisfied, smug, critique, North American middle class, social settings, societal foible, human connection, communication, transformation, denial, cruelty, cynicism, provocative, taboos, squirm, uncomfortable, stimulating dialogue
Worldwide gross: NA
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): NA
US/Canada gross: NA
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend:
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
Aaron Eckhart – Barry
Catherine Keener – Terri
Nastassja Kinski – Cheri
Jason Patric – Cary
Ben Stiller – Jerry
Neil LaBute – Director
Jason Patric, Steve Golin – Producers
Neil LaBute – Writer
Director(s)
Neil LaBute
Writer(s)
Neil LaBute
Producer(s)
Jason Patric, Steve Golin
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
2 wins & 4 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (57) | Top Critics (22) | Fresh (44) | Rotten (13)
September 7, 2011 | Rating: A-
Lisa Schwarzbaum
Entertainment Weekly
TOP CRITIC
This honorable follow-up to LaBute’s stunning debut, In the Company of Men, which also dissects sexual politics, is well acted by the entire ensemble.
March 26, 2009 | Rating: B
Emanuel Levy
Variety
TOP CRITIC
It is superbly executed and, for all its pitilessness, it’s an intelligent dramatization of the impact that consumerist values have had on the psyche of the North American middle class at the end of the 20th century.
April 25, 2003 | Rating: 4/4
John Haslett Cuff
Globe and Mail
TOP CRITIC
October 19, 2002 | Rating: 2/4
Susan Stark
Detroit News
TOP CRITIC
With LaBute, you get a filmmaker who cuts to the timeless heart of sexual warfare.
May 11, 2001
Peter Travers
Rolling Stone
TOP CRITIC
LaBute writes conversations as though eavesdropping were his full-time occupation.
January 1, 2000 | Rating: 4/5
Marjorie Baumgarten
Austin Chronicle
TOP CRITIC
The actors are fine across the board, but the stand-out is Catherine Keener.
July 23, 2007 | Rating: 4/5
Rob Gonsalves
eFilmCritic.com
April 9, 2005 | Rating: B-
Robin Clifford
Reeling Reviews
It’s both a daring composition and a repelling look at gender warfare.
July 1, 2004 | Rating: 3/4
Judith Egerton
Courier-Journal (Louisville, KY)
January 10, 2003 | Rating: C
Nick Davis
Nick’s Flick Picks
You will not like Your Friends and Neighbors; it’s intense, unflinching and uncomfortable. You won’t look away from it, though, and you won’t forget the people it showed you for a long time.
November 7, 2002 | Rating: 4.5/5
James Rocchi
Netflix
If you can stand to watch Your Friends & Neighbors, you won’t forget it.
October 15, 2002 | Rating: 3.5/4
Margaret A. McGurk
Cincinnati Enquirer…
Plot
Theater instructor Jerry starts an affair with Mary, and that starts a chain of events that affect their respective partners Terri and Barry and other characters in the film, creating a web of relationships.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Jason Patric’s monologue in the sauna is described as “one of the most haunting moments in the film.”
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