Synopsis

The three friends with money, Frannie, Jane, and Christine, share a concern for Olivia who seems unable to make a living or sustain a relationship, at least by their standards. Their group examination of her lack of options magnifies each of their own doubts and concerns about the marriages and careers to which they have committed themselves. Unwittingly, these doubts and concerns will put pressure their own relationships. Meanwhile Olivia, a former teacher who cleans houses for a living and collects samples from cosmetic counters, drifts through each of her friends' lives, at times avoiding the issue of money altogether, and at other times accepting her friends’ generosity. When Olivia finally finds satisfaction and stability from an unexpected place, her own somewhat happy ending is muted by the harsh reality of the suddenly disassembled and pretentious lives of her best friends.

What The Critics Say

"Catherine Keener has been the mainstay of all of Holofcener’s films and she’s wonderful in this, as is Joan Cusack. The most elusive of the four is the character of Olivia. It’s hard to figure out what makes her tick, what makes her so self-effacing when she’s so pretty, but once again Jennifer Aniston takes on an interesting, if slightly elusive role and performs well. And the men give solid support. I liked this film a lot." Margaret Pomeranz ABC AT THE MOVIES "Despite the clichéd script, "Friends with Money" is entertaining, well acted and, thankfully, short" Robin Clifford REELING REVIEWS "The cast is terrific, the movie isn't." Peter Rainer CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR "Both entertaining and frustrating." Jack Garner ROCHESTER DEMOCRAT AND CHRONICLE "A pitch-perfect ensemble comedy that burrows deep into the mind-set of white, upper middle-class Angelenos, anxious to strike the right balance among career, family, love life and money but never quite pulling it off." Kirk Honeycutt HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

"It's witty and, as you know, I like my comedy to be based on truth and honesty. I like to believe in the characters before I can laugh at them. And I think that's very true of this. So, I thoroughly enjoyed this film." David Stratton ABC AT THE MOVIES "Quite funny, the script has but one fault. It has a final page. When the movie finishes, your only complaint will be that you wished it were longer." Steve Rhodes INTERNET REVIEWS "One of those exasperating movies that you admire without necessarily liking." Philip Wuntch DALLAS MORNING NEWS "Promises to say more, but never goes further than giving us small observations of modern urban life." Dennis Schwartz OZUS' WORLD MOVIE REVIEWS "Friends with Money is not a finished portrait, just a disposable snapshot of people we're less than invested in." Terry Lawson DETROIT FREE PRESS "... offers an agreeable grazing menu of smart dialogue, wry observational humor and bright characterizations, but doesn't end up feeling like a full meal." Todd McCarthy VARIETY

The Inside Story Money and the lack of it, is what would inspire writer/director Nicole Holofcener to write and make her latest film, "Friends With Money". "Among my friends, we all talk about it from time to time, but not directly. How tricky it is between friends, whether you borrow money, whether you envy your more affluent friends, or pity the ones that are in need of it. I eventually found myself talking to my friends a lot about it. Everyone’s in denial about how important it can be. We’re all sort of messed up about it. Out of those conversations, I was inspired to write and make this film," declares Holofcener. As she did with her previous film "Lovely & Amazing", this is again, a film many might see as anchored by women, fortunately it isn't. For while the female characters are the bigger part of the films focus, it is the strength in the male characters that glues the story together. One interviewer noted that "the men in the film have a very significant and unique presence." While they do, I think most will be attracted to Holofcener's film because of the actresses cast in the 'lead' roles. There's dual Academy Award winner Fances McDormand; Broadcast Film Critics Association Award winner Joan Cusack; Boston Society of Film Critics Award winner Catherine Keener and finally the ever popular star of friends, Golden Globe winner Jennifer Aniston. This is the third time Keener has worked with Holofcener over a ten year period. Holofcener recalls the first time they worked together. "I was certainly more nervous the first time I worked with her ten years ago. Back then, I would try really hard to sound smart, as if to remind her that I’d done my homework. I would come up with elaborate, emotional movitations, backstories, all that." And how has that changed? "Now if I want her to do something, I just ask her to, like walk to the door and look sad. We have a mutual respect and trust that makes everything safe and fun." Keener admits she was very happy to work with Holofcener for a third time. "I happen to think that Nicole is an amazing writer. I’ve worked with her twice already, but I don’t necessarily know what she’s after. I just know that she’s up to something. I just want to be involved because she has a perspective that not many people have," Keener says. Of her character she says, “Christine is a screenwriter and she writes with her husband. Their marriage is kind of in the process of falling apart and she’s got a lot of friends, she hopes, to pull her through it." Frances McDormand describes her character Jane "as a woman in menopause mode. Nicole has written a role that is probably one of the richest, most fully recognizable characters I’ve ever played. Menopause in not an overnight event (in a woman’s life). It can take years. And it’s a kind of hormonal activity that makes you crazy and not interested in sitting in chairs, but instead you want to walk around a lot. You really get tired of doing things like combing your hair and being socially nice. You say things out of turn or get too loud and opinionated at times. You experience those kinds of things, and that’s where we come in on with Jane." Joan Cusack sees her character Franny as "an LA Suburban Mom but really rich. She’s already worked out a lot of her money issues. She has a little more peace in her life than her friends have/do and she’s really kind of crazy about her husband though even between them there are money issues, like do you really need to spend so much money on sneakers for your kids simply because you have it. That’s the kind of thing that people really argue about." Emmy Award winner Jennifer Aniston plays Olivia. She's quit her teaching job and now cleans houses for a living. "I truly loved this script and this character," Aniston remarks. "This script was just one of those great reads. Easy and funny. Nicole just writes such great characters that are fun to play. Olivia is in that point in her life where she has no direction whatsoever. She’s not quite sure where she’s going and I think that we can all relate to that." Simon McBurney play Franny's husband Aaron. He sees the complexity of their relationship. "Jane is in a period in her life where she’s not at all certain as to what is going on. She’s trying to work a lot of stuff out. But Aaron is unsure himself even though he’s incredibly sympathetic to all that. Theirs is an instinctive relationship, yet he’s frustrated within it and maybe open to trying to explore outside it." Jason Isaacs, who plays Christine’s husband David admits "It was fun for me to be in the film. I have to play an American, which I’m not, and I hope that I can get away with it. I basically came on board because I loved this screenplay and said that I would play anyone in it and, in short, here I am." For those who are wondering, Isaacs is English. And here's something many wouldn't know. In 1985 he graduated from Bristol University with a degree in Law. While at Bristol University he directed and/or appeared in over 20 productions. Bitten by the acting bug Isaacs went on to graduate from Central School of Speech and Drama in 1989 and has made his mark in the film industry after appearing in films such as "Shopping, "Dragonheart", "Armageddon", "The End of the Affair", "The Patriot", "Black Hawk Down" and most recently as Lucius Malfoy in "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" and "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire". Isaacs see David and Christines marriage "as a tense relationship. I think among the group of friends in this group, ours is probably the rockiest relationship in the bunch. And you can see that it’s coming to a deep fissure, one way or the other." Greg Germann, who plays Franny's husband Matt notes that "Matt is a friend with money. I think that my wife and I are really crazy about each other. We have lots of sex, lots of fun in our lives. We’re pretty happily married. She doesn’t like that I smoke but that’s about it. We’re the couple that proves that money can make happiness easier, but even so there are things that pop up every once in awhile." It's interesting to note that all the married couples have reached that age where you are either comfortable with each other and what that may bring in the future, or you are looking for new horizons, a way out. "I do think that once in our forties and fifties we tend to look at things in a different way," notes Holofcener. "These four women are friends in or near that age. And, at this point in life, they have these feelings of 'This is it. This is what life looks like now and this is what our life will be. This is not a rehearsal anymore. This is not what it’s going to be like, this is what it is like. These are your children, and this is your husband. And this is how much money you have and this is what you can or can’t do as a result.' You have to decide whether you are happy with what you see or unhappy with what you see. You really look at these things in your late thirties and early forties and this movie is about that for these four women." The Verdict "While there is a lot to enjoy in "Friends With Money" the end result is not a totally satisfying experience for cinemagoers. Most of the characters are pretentious people who we don't want to care about. Once again, as she did in "The Breakup", Jennifer Anniston again fails to deliver onscreen, leaving one to wonder how long her popularity can continue to carry her career. The abrupt, emotionless ending will most in the audience feeling a little cheated, but I suspect some will appreciate the short running time of eithy eight minutes including all credits. What saves "Friends With Money" is the performances of McDormand, Keener, Cusack and 1998 Laurence Olivier Theatre Award winner Simon McBurney. On that point it is recommendable. 3 STARS." Cast & Crew Bytes "FRIENDS WITH MONEY" stars .......
Two Time Academy Award winner Fances McDormand ["Fargo", "The Man Who Wasn't There", "Laurel Canyon" and "North Country"]; New York Film Critics Circle Award winner Joan Cusack ["Grosse Pointe Blank", "Arlington Road", "Runaway Bride" and "The School of Rock"]; Boston Society of Film Critics & L.A. Film Critics Association Award winner Catherine Keener ["The Gun in Betty Lou's Handbag", "Lovely & Amazing", "The 40 Year Old Virgin" and "Capote"]; Greg Germann ["So I Married an Axe Murderer", "Clear and Present Danger" and "Joe Somebody"], Tim Sharp ["A Ninja Pays Half My Rent", "Kicking & Screaming" and "Fun with Dick and Jane"] and Golden Globe winner Jennifer Aniston ["The Good Girl", "Bruce Almighty", "Along Came Polly" and "Derailed"] as Olivia.
"FRIENDS WITH MONEY" was .......
directed by Nicole Holofcener ["Angry", "Walking and Talking" and "Lovely & Amazing"]; screenplay by Nicole Holofcener ["Walking and Talking" and "Lovely & Amazing"]; edited by Robert Frazen ["Here on Earth", "Lovely & Amazing" and "Igby Goes Down"]; cinematography by Terry Stacey ["Bad Bosses Go to Hell", "The Door In The Floor" and "In Her Shoes"]; art direction by Victoria Ruskin ["Presence Of Mind" and "The Dying Gaul"]; production design by Amy B Ancona ["The Liars' Club", "The Last Time I Committed Suicide", "Two Can Play That Game" and "Friday After Next"]; costume design by Michael Wilkinson ["Looking for Alibrandi", "Party Monster", "American Splendor" and "Garden State"], produced by Anthony Bregman ["Love God", "Lovely & Amazing", "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" and "Thumbsucker"]. Run Time 88 minutes Rated M [AUST] Copyright ©2006 - Sony Pictures Classics - All Rights Reserved Copyright Protected © 2006 - Impact Internet Services - All Rights Reserved