The Doctor's Friend

By John Plunkett

           Loved, feared, destroyed. Director Brian Patrick Butler worked on many notable films, such as the Godfather, but he is accustomed to directing sci-fi films. I recently watched one of the strangest and most creative films named Friend of the World. For the short 2020 film, many takeaways can be compared to older movies. Friend of the World had a 60s vibe, along with edgy performances, twists, turns, and an effective way that portrayed the end of the world. The film takes place after a catastrophic global war, where a young filmmaker awakens in the carnage and seeks refuge with the only other survivor. Together, they search the toxic area in search of safety and answers. However, both survivors couldn’t be more different. The young filmmaker, Diane, has a liberal view of the world, while the other survivor, General Gore of the United States Army, has views that are contradicting because the United States is democratic, however his views are aligned with communism and Darwinism. These two never engage with each other besides trying to be beneficial to each other. The plot focuses on Diane and Gore attempting to find safety while encountering hallucinations, strange characters, and zombies. The film demonstrates themes of dark comedy, war, and horror. The main point of the film comes towards the beginning with a quote from Italian poet, Dante Alighieri, “The more a thing is perfect, the more it feels pleasure and likewise pain.” This is seen throughout the film especially when Diane says, “The world is beautiful, and a chaotic mess.” The film’s cinematography, characters, and theme created a parallel to that of Dr. Strangelove.

            While watching the film, there were many aspects of Dr. Strangelove that were illuminated in Friend of the World. Both films were satirical war films and had a main character that put their views over others. Their communistic views of taking control played an important role in both satirical films. It was also ironic how both characters with communist views were generals in the United States Army. General Ripper and General Gore were both mentally deranged people who thought the only way to have their views come to light was to take control. Gore states towards the end of the film, “The only way to overcome fear is to destroy” and that is exactly what General Ripper did when he took matters into his own hands and ordered “Plan R,” which destroyed the world. Gore was also being strongly reminiscent of General Ripper with his strange obsession with people’s fluids. Gore and Ripper were both big men with big voices, guts, and ideals.

            The cinematography between films also had many key similarities such as the scenes, props, and camera angles. Both movies were filmed in black and white to express a wartime effect. It was also odd to see Friend of the World in black and white because it was a fairly new movie and not made in the 1900s. At the beginning of the movie, the camera angle point at a gun which gave a feeling of suspense. This resembled the scene in Dr. Strangelove when the camera pointed at General Ripper’s gun which also showed suspense and fear. There were also many instances in both films where the camera angle was in the worm’s eye view. This was to show a sense of strong authoritarian power. Lastly, towards the end of the film, when Gore finished Diane’s film, he had an outburst expressing his extreme ideas and how we need to take control, just as Dr. Strangelove did.

            This film is likely to leave plenty of viewers confused about what the hell they watched… and I’m okay with that. This film was a perplexing experience that I’m glad to have taken. This weird and off-beat film will also find plenty of viewers that will enjoy this strange trip through the bunkers and cellars of a ruined world. The confusing plot, contradicting characters, and creative cinematography in both pieces of film illuminate the thought of questioning the motives of others and our reality.