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Friendship's Death

Play trailer Friendship's Death 1987 1h 18m Sci-Fi Play Trailer Watchlist
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Tomatometer 3 Reviews 70% Popcornmeter 50+ Ratings
True to her name, Friendship (Tilda Swinton) wants all humans to get along. She's a robot from a distant world planning to exhort mankind to reform its violent ways. But, when she lands in Amman, Jordan, in 1970, she finds Palestinians waging deadly battles with Jordanians. Sullivan (Bill Paterson), a British journalist covering the fighting, ferries her to safety, and the unlikely pals pass the time discussing mortality, technology, the nature of warfare and the modern media.

Critics Reviews

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Peter Bradshaw Guardian The droll double-act chemistry between Paterson and Swinton is unexpectedly great, especially considering the enigmatically childlike and lovably humourless demeanour that Swinton often projects. Rated: 4/5 Jun 16, 2021 Full Review Martin Unsworth Starburst The chemistry between Swinton and Bill Paterson is electric. The former being adept at playing burnt-out, cynical characters. It's full of metaphors, of course, but even taken on face value, it's an absorbing, prescient watch. Rated: 3/5 Jun 28, 2021 Full Review Andrew Gaudion VultureHound This is mostly a pleasantly strange meditation on what it means to be human that has many a prescient observation to share about life on Planet Earth. Rated: 3.5/5 Oct 19, 2020 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Ross T Topical, even more so now than when it was made. We have philosophy from outsiders maybe all are outsider in war. 50 years and simulant Friendship could have landed yesterday and had the same experience. Seems she/her was right. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 12/09/24 Full Review Scott H As she narrates the premise in its entirety early on, one could be forgiven for believing that Swinton is indeed an alien sent to Earth - a sex bot that can’t get any customers. Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 08/13/24 Full Review Audience Member Ahead of it's time. Sci-fi of a cerebral kind and exploring concepts that were at best nascent at the time of it's release. Swinton and Paterson both put in excellent performances. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/29/23 Full Review Audience Member One of my all-time favorits Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/08/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Friendship's Death

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Friendship's Death

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Movie Info

Synopsis True to her name, Friendship (Tilda Swinton) wants all humans to get along. She's a robot from a distant world planning to exhort mankind to reform its violent ways. But, when she lands in Amman, Jordan, in 1970, she finds Palestinians waging deadly battles with Jordanians. Sullivan (Bill Paterson), a British journalist covering the fighting, ferries her to safety, and the unlikely pals pass the time discussing mortality, technology, the nature of warfare and the modern media.
Director
Peter Wollen
Producer
Rebecca O'Brien
Screenwriter
Peter Wollen
Production Co
British Film Institute (BFI), Modelmark, Channel Four Films
Genre
Sci-Fi
Original Language
English
Runtime
1h 18m