Buddying up: Tim Robinson and Paul Rudd in ‘Friendship’.

FRIENDSHIP *** (100 mins) M
In a prime example of cringe comedy, Craig (Tim Robinson, very funny), a socially inept suburban husband, takes an instant liking to his new neighbour Austin (Paul Rudd), the nightly weatherman at a local TV station. 

After an initial spirt of mutual bonding, Craig’s inability to understand boundaries lead to a series of odd behaviours that prompt Austin to cut ties. Obsession overrides all, however, as Craig tries repairing things with borderline psychopathic behaviour, such as crashing a party. 

Happily veering across the line between domestic satire and full-on black comedy, writer/director Andrew DeYoung shows an affinity for creating scenes with car-crash appeal, making us watch situations that are as fascinating as they are squirm-worthy.

I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER *1/2 (111 minutes) MA
The penchant for remakes has found great purchase in the horror genre with most of them, thankfully, being quite good. 

If only that were the case here – though in fairness it need be said that the remake of I Know What You Did Last Summer cannot be faulted for faithfully replicating the utter mediocrity of the 1997 original, regarded by some, for whatever bizarre reason, as a classic. It made big bank at the time, but that’s not a qualification.

A desperate gasp for oxygen in the hopes of reigniting the franchise, this tepid retooling is both a remake and a sequel of sorts, referencing the events depicted in the original while subjecting the attractive Gen-Z cast to the same slasher treatment.

For those fortunate enough to be unfamiliar with the premise, it’s all about a murderous maniac in a fisherman’s raincoat who hacks away at nubile youngsters with a hook, with all the attendant running and screaming and gory effects.

This being a revisiting of standard 1990s torture porn, much of the emphasis is on the terrorizing and gratuitously graphic dispatching of helpless females, a genre cliche that begs the question: where is the outcry? With violence against women rightly occupying so much space in the media it’s truly puzzling why the continuous slaughter of women on screen draws so little comment.

Survivors from the original join in the non-terrifying terror here, but it’s only the easily spooked who will react to the predictable jump cuts and bargain-basement scare tactics. 

Those hardcore genre fans hoping to see something new or inventive will be sorely disappointed, possibly enough so to drift off.