Find Your Friends (2026)
Official Synopsis
Amber and her four best friends flee Los Angeles for a drug-fueled girls’ trip to Joshua Tree. However, their desert getaway devolves into a violent nightmare as they face hostility from locals and festering resentments within the group surface, turning their reckless escape into a fight for survival.
William’s Review
Find Your Friends frustrated me because I can clearly see the movie it wanted to be. Writer-director Izabel Pakzad has spoken about drawing from real experiences and wanted to examine modern party culture, female friendships, privilege, and trauma while subverting familiar horror conventions. Those are worthwhile ideas, and on paper they could have resulted in something genuinely compelling. Unfortunately, I don’t think the screenplay ever translates those ambitions into characters that audiences can connect with.
The biggest issue is that the film mistakes party scene after party scene with little meaningful dialogue with character development. Nearly the entire first hour is spent watching these women party, drink, argue, and move from one excess to another. I understand that this lifestyle is the point, but eventually I needed the movie to tell me who these people actually were beneath all of that. Instead, they blur together. Their conversations rarely reveal anything meaningful about their personalities, relationships, or motivations, making it difficult to distinguish one character from another.
That’s especially disappointing because the performances themselves are actually good. I believed every actor was fully committed to the world the film was creating. The cinematography is polished, the direction is confident, and the production value exceeds what I expected. From a filmmaking standpoint, there’s talent on display, so my criticism falls almost entirely on the screenplay’s inability to provide an emotional anchor.
When the horror elements finally arrive late in the film, they hit hard. The final act is undeniably intense and doesn’t shy away from difficult material, but horror works best when you care about the people experiencing it. By delaying that payoff for so long without first earning my investment, the violence felt more shocking than emotionally impactful. I also found myself comparing it to Revenge, another film built around similarly uncomfortable subject matter. That movie succeeds because it spends time making you care about its character before everything falls apart. With this film, instead of rooting for specific characters, I simply waited for the movie to give me someone worth following.
There’s obvious filmmaking talent behind Find Your Friends, but strong direction can’t overcome a screenplay that never establishes meaningful emotional connections. For me, that’s enough to land on a Don’t Bother.
The biggest issue is that the film mistakes party scene after party scene with little meaningful dialogue with character development. Nearly the entire first hour is spent watching these women party, drink, argue, and move from one excess to another. I understand that this lifestyle is the point, but eventually I needed the movie to tell me who these people actually were beneath all of that. Instead, they blur together. Their conversations rarely reveal anything meaningful about their personalities, relationships, or motivations, making it difficult to distinguish one character from another.
That’s especially disappointing because the performances themselves are actually good. I believed every actor was fully committed to the world the film was creating. The cinematography is polished, the direction is confident, and the production value exceeds what I expected. From a filmmaking standpoint, there’s talent on display, so my criticism falls almost entirely on the screenplay’s inability to provide an emotional anchor.
When the horror elements finally arrive late in the film, they hit hard. The final act is undeniably intense and doesn’t shy away from difficult material, but horror works best when you care about the people experiencing it. By delaying that payoff for so long without first earning my investment, the violence felt more shocking than emotionally impactful. I also found myself comparing it to Revenge, another film built around similarly uncomfortable subject matter. That movie succeeds because it spends time making you care about its character before everything falls apart. With this film, instead of rooting for specific characters, I simply waited for the movie to give me someone worth following.
There’s obvious filmmaking talent behind Find Your Friends, but strong direction can’t overcome a screenplay that never establishes meaningful emotional connections. For me, that’s enough to land on a Don’t Bother.
Amy’s Review
This became the first movie in Fear Review history that I actually walked out of before it ended, and it had nothing to do with gore, scares, or violence. Horror has made me uncomfortable plenty of times before. That’s part of the genre. What made me leave was that I simply couldn’t spend another minute with these characters.
From the opening scenes, every conversation felt like it was trying to outdo the previous one in vulgarity and excess. Every interaction revolved around partying, drinking, drugs, crude dialogue, or insulting each other. After about thirty minutes, I realized I hadn’t learned a single meaningful thing about any of these women beyond the lifestyle they were living. I wasn’t rooting for anyone because the movie never gave me a reason to.
What disappointed me even more is that the acting wasn’t the problem. The cast completely committed to what they were asked to do, and I believed these characters existed in this world. The problem is that I didn’t enjoy spending time with them. I kept waiting for a quieter scene where someone showed vulnerability or where the friendships actually felt genuine. Instead, everyone seemed hostile, selfish, or emotionally disconnected from one another.
William later explained where the story eventually goes and I understand the commentary on party culture, privilege, and trauma, but if the audience has already emotionally checked out before the horror truly begins, none of that lands the way it’s supposed to.
I also found myself wondering who this movie was really for. Maybe people who lived this exact lifestyle will recognize something authentic in these characters. I certainly didn’t. It all felt so exaggerated that I couldn’t relate to anyone on screen, and because of that, every dramatic moment felt distant instead of devastating. All of the dialogue between the women on screen was superficial, crass, and so over the top it made we wonder if people actually speak like that in real life.
Ironically, I left before the movie reached the most violent material, and I don’t regret that decision. The fact that I was more relieved to leave than curious about how the story ended says everything about my experience. I respect the effort that went into making the film, but for me, this was an easy Don’t Bother.
From the opening scenes, every conversation felt like it was trying to outdo the previous one in vulgarity and excess. Every interaction revolved around partying, drinking, drugs, crude dialogue, or insulting each other. After about thirty minutes, I realized I hadn’t learned a single meaningful thing about any of these women beyond the lifestyle they were living. I wasn’t rooting for anyone because the movie never gave me a reason to.
What disappointed me even more is that the acting wasn’t the problem. The cast completely committed to what they were asked to do, and I believed these characters existed in this world. The problem is that I didn’t enjoy spending time with them. I kept waiting for a quieter scene where someone showed vulnerability or where the friendships actually felt genuine. Instead, everyone seemed hostile, selfish, or emotionally disconnected from one another.
William later explained where the story eventually goes and I understand the commentary on party culture, privilege, and trauma, but if the audience has already emotionally checked out before the horror truly begins, none of that lands the way it’s supposed to.
I also found myself wondering who this movie was really for. Maybe people who lived this exact lifestyle will recognize something authentic in these characters. I certainly didn’t. It all felt so exaggerated that I couldn’t relate to anyone on screen, and because of that, every dramatic moment felt distant instead of devastating. All of the dialogue between the women on screen was superficial, crass, and so over the top it made we wonder if people actually speak like that in real life.
Ironically, I left before the movie reached the most violent material, and I don’t regret that decision. The fact that I was more relieved to leave than curious about how the story ended says everything about my experience. I respect the effort that went into making the film, but for me, this was an easy Don’t Bother.