The Friends

A delicate gem from one of Japanese cinema’s most revered stylists, The Friends finds the late Shinji Sōmai (Typhoon Club, Moving) at his most tender and unadorned. This lyrical coming-of-age tale, newly restored in 4K, follows three curious boys over one summer as they spy on a reclusive old man rumored to be dying—only to form an unexpected friendship that gently guides them toward compassion, loss, and the quiet end of childhood. Sōmai’s signature long takes and sunwashed compositions capture the rhythms of youth with patient, poetic clarity, and feel especially resonant as the summer season draws to a close. A revelatory rediscovery and a natural companion to Moving—whose revival at FLC last year introduced a new generation to Sōmai’s singular vision—The Friends reaffirms his influence on contemporary directors like Hirokazu Kore-eda, who called him “a filmmaker who captured adolescence like no other.” A Cinema Guild release.