How much of your life would you give up to help a friend?
That’s the question at the heart of Gabriela Cowperthwaite’s “The Friend,” which stars Jason Segel, Dakota Johnson and Casey Affleck, and which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on Friday.
The film, which is up for sale, is based on a true story adapted from an Esquire article by Matt Teague, who wrote about a childhood friend who dropped everything, including his job and his girlfriend, to take care of Teague and his family when his wife Nicole was diagnosed with cancer.
Dane (Segel) moves in with Nicole (Johnson), Matt (Affleck) and their two daughters as the cancer takes hold, but we discover that he is struggling with his own demons.