Must-See Movies About Friendship

Like romantic relationships, we choose our friends with intention. Some friends, though, can stay with us for life.

01:45 09 February 2023

So much media is made up of romantic and family relationships. While they are, of course, special and give meaning to our lives, what about friendships? Like romantic relationships, we choose our friends with intention. Some friends, though, can stay with us for life.

Here's to the best friends out there - the ride or dies who would do anything for their bestie. Check out these four films to put on with your BFF to celebrate the power of friendship.

Marley & Me

While the first pick on this list may have the most unconventional friendship, it's also the strongest. The bond between humans and their canine companions goes beyond words. The 2008 film Marley & Me illustrates this by showing the enduring bond between a rambunctious golden retriever and its loveable owners, played by Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson.

Through their love and support of humans, dogs can go above and beyond human capabilities, such as what service dogs do for their owners after service dog registration. Throw on Marley & Me if you need a good cry over your furry friends, past and present.

Walking and Talking

The American writer and director Nicole Holofcener has long graced screens with poignant depictions of female friendships, and Walking and Talking may be one of her best. Starring the late, great Anne Heche and Catherine Keener, this underrated 1996 classic follows two New York City pals through various highs and lows.

They get boyfriends, go through breakups, experience crushes, get jobs, go on vacations, and, most beautiful to see, walk and talk with one another. And since the CDC recommends exercising with others for physical and mental health, this film can also act as an instructional video! Let's get physical!

Easy Rider

It's true: male friendship can be harder to define and represent in the media. But in 1969, Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda kicked off a cultural revolution with their classic story of male camaraderie, Easy Rider.

Easy Rider follows Hopper and Fonda's characters as they ride through the American Southwest and South on motorcycles. Along the way, they encounter many characters and places – the good, bad, and ugly of American culture. But their bond never wavers: they just ride on.

Mustang

Written and directed in 2015 by Deniz Gamze Ergüven, Mustang tells the gripping and life-affirming story of five adolescent orphans struggling against conservative Turkish culture. When they are caught innocently playing with some local boys on a beach, the girls are hideously punished and forced into arranged marriages that the girls ultimately plot to escape.

Mustang is an ode to the undying flame of youth and the power of friendship, despite all odds.

Hold Your Loved Ones Close

Let us know if you put any of these four films on with your best friends. You'll certainly find a lot to talk about - but don't you always? That's the amazing thing about good friends: they're with you through the good, the bad, and the boring.