Fwends Opens Nationwide

By June Ramli

Sydney, Nov 7: Sophie Somerville’s debut feature Fwends follows Jessie, who drops into Melbourne to reconnect with Em, an old friend from Sydney, after a bruising workplace incident. Across a meandering weekend, the pair walk, talk, reminisce and test the tensile strength of their friendship. The film premiered in the Berlinale Forum 2025 and runs 92 minutes, led by performances from Melissa Gan (Jessie) and Emmanuelle Mattana (Em).

What worked

There’s a gentle, observational quality to the filmmaking: long takes, natural light, and a city that feels like a third character. The casting reflects contemporary Australia without fanfare; seeing a Chinese-Australian lead opposite a white Australian lead reads as lived-in rather than performative. The chemistry between Gan and Mattana is unforced, and their near-argument late in the film is the one moment where the temperature meaningfully rises. Credit, too, to Carter Looker’s nimble, location-driven cinematography and the lo-fi ethos that turns budget limits into texture. FWENDS_EPK

What didn’t land (for me)

I struggled with the storytelling. The film resists a central dilemma, clear turning points, or a satisfying climax; the stakes feel consistently low. Slice-of-life can be illuminating, but here the accumulation of small moments didn’t add up to a larger emotional payload. Without a sharper arc or escalating conflict, the conversations sometimes play like pleasant drift rather than discovery.

Performances & voice

Gan and Mattana do much of the lifting, keeping the scenes buoyant even when the narrative treads water. Somerville’s voice is sincere and humanistic—she’s plainly interested in ordinary people and the way friendship can be both refuge and mirror—and that sincerity gives the film its warmth.

Verdict

If you enjoy low-key, talky hangs—films that prize vibe over plot—Fwends offers an authentic glimpse of contemporary Australian life and a fond, unfussy portrait of female friendship. For viewers who need a stronger hook or clear dramatic escalation, it may feel thin. I’d still recommend it to fans of naturalistic indie cinema and anyone curious about Melbourne seen through a tender, DIY lens.

Credits: Written and directed by Sophie Somerville; starring Melissa Gan and Emmanuelle Mattana; produced by Somerville, Carter Looker, and Sarah Hegge-Taylor. The film premieres today in cinemas across Australia.