I came very close to walking out of this incredible mess when I saw it during its original release. The story is not only ridiculous, it is nauseating. The dialog is stiff and unnatural and the plot is from another universe where people might possibly behave like they do in this opus. I squirmed through every single second and stayed only out of respect for the director and it was raining hard outside the theater. There is not one likable character in this film and not one of them seems to be sane. An atrocious script and a sad failure for Arthur Penn. From the grosses recorded here, I seem only one of a handful of people to suffer through this in a theater and even after nearly 30 years I recall the pain as if it were only yesterday and want to return to that box office and demand my money back! How anyone could enjoy this junk is beyond me. It doesn't even qualify as a film that is unpleasant but offers a growth experience and reflects some aspect of the human condition. After all these years, I needed so much to get this off my chest and express my utter outrage and contempt for a movie so bad that whenever I hear it mentioned I am overcome by nausea.
Review of Four Friends
