This movie has a cute and clever premise but doesn't dwell on that rest of the way. It starts off with a lonely young man, having a crush on a female guitarist, was approached by her to be her boyfriend. Only they never spoke again after he agreed, and shortly she commits suicide (we assume). Rest of the movie deals with how he handles her family -- particular her sister -- but the movie was smart to not pound on this premise endlessly. It's not meant to be just a comedy, but also an introspection of the lead character. Beautifully photographed and composed of mostly quiet scenes, the movie succeeds in eliciting empathy toward the characters. I will say though, that the ending is rather hastily done, giving me the impression that the director/writer wasn't sure how to end this.
I think this might be the first movie where I got to hear Swiss German. I would not have noticed it were it not pointed out by the festival host and the director during the introduction. It definitely doesn't sound anything like (high) German. Also, the official English title is "The Friend" but I'd have preferred it being "The Boyfriend." In the scene where the lead first met the family, the mother asked if he were her "freund." She certainly did not mean just any friend in this context.
