Fwends, the debut feature from Australian filmmaker Sophie Somerville, follows twentysomething friends Em (Emmanuelle Mattana) and Jessie (Melissa Gan), who embark on an often surreal odyssey through Melbourne as they attempt to reconnect with each other over the course of a weekend. Somerville's film—which screens tomorrow and Friday at the BFI London Film Festival as part of the Laugh strand—taps into the same vein as Mike Leigh's somewhat overlooked 1997 film Career Girls, a deeply profound exploration of two old college flatmates reuniting after six years of adult life has put their friendship on hold.
As with Leigh's a deceptively slight film—which also unfolds during a single weekend—Fwends, at least in its early stages, uses humour to mask the pathos. The story begins with Jessie and Em searching for each other in a Melbourne Metro station; Em is visiting from Sydney, where she has a demanding job at a law firm, and Melburnian Jessie, who has spent several years travelling the world, is dealing with a difficult breakup from her boyfriend. It soon transpires that Em has been experiencing sexual harassment at work, and she's unsure what—if anything—she should do about it, lest it derail the career she's built for herself.
Both women, it seems, could really use this break from their respective worries—although it's not clear what they'll do, as Jessie has not made any plans for the weekend, nor has she gone to the trouble of organising suitable bedding for her houseguest. But the situation regarding the sleeping arrangements becomes moot once the pair, upon returning from dinner, find they are locked out of Jessie's apartment; Jessie thinks she's left her keys in the restaurant, which has now closed for the day, and while her ex still has a key to the flat, he's since relocated to Brisbane. Cue an After Hours-style schlep around nocturnal Melbourne.
Gan and Mattana—both of whom are terrific in what is essentially a two-hander—are given writing credits alongside Somerville, and this alludes to the Leigh-like improvisational nature of the project. But Fwends is no pale imitation; rather, Somerville's own cinematic voice is present here, and she's expertly captured the awkwardness that comes with seeing an old friend for the first time in years. Somerville highlights both the silent gap that lies between these women and the painful inevitability of this time-induced schism, and her film is infused with a melancholy that makes the final shot almost unbearably poignant.
