FlixChatter Review: The Travel Companion—A deadpan comedy about the bumpy ride of longtime friendship and indie filmmaking

The Travel Companion movie

Travel can be pricey for most folks who aren’t billionaires, but it’s particularly tough for indie filmmakers who need to travel to create their art. Luckily for Simon (Tristan Turner), a struggling documentary filmmaker in NYC, his roommate and best buddy since 3rd grade, Bruce (Anthony Oberbeck), has a job at an airline that lets him pick a travel companion each year. For years, that lucky companion has been Simon, which means he gets to fly for free (albeit on standby), making it possible for him to jet off to different locations to film his project.

Filmmaker duo Alex Mallis and Travis Wood, who are also based in NYC, astutely capture the struggles many indie filmmakers face. Anyone who’s attended an indie film screening at a local festival can relate to the opening scene. As someone who’s written and produced a few short films, I’ve found myself in a similar situation with other filmmakers after a screening, where we’d all line up in front of the theater, waiting for our chance to talk about our film. Simon is seen at the end of a long line, and by the time it’s his turn, they run out of time, and everyone has to leave the theater. As the two best friends are about to hit the bar, another filmmaker, Beatrice (Naomi Asa), enters the scene, which quickly changes their dynamic.

The Travel Companion -film fest scene

Written by Mallis, Wood, and Weston Auburn, the humor is decidedly deadpan, featuring understated performances from a mostly unknown cast. While the opening scene effectively makes viewers empathize with Simon, that feeling quickly erodes as he self-sabotages his situation. As Beatrice gets closer to Bruce, Simon quickly finds himself as the third wheel. Simon begins to freak out at the thought of Bruce choosing his new girlfriend as his travel companion for next year. His reactions can be funny but cringe-inducing, which is intentional since the script aims to make you squirm while showcasing Simon’s self-absorption and cluelessness. It can be painful to watch Simon make one poor decision after another that further alienates him from Bruce.

The Travel Companion - buddy comedy

The Travel Companion highlights the fragility of longtime friendships, particularly those with differing personalities. Simon is ambitious, yet he can also be brash and selfish, which might reflect the typical traits of the creative type. The portable sauna scene perfectly illustrates how obliviously annoying Simon can be. There’s also a very cringy scene between Simon and a film festival programmer that made me scream at the screen for him to stop.

On the flip side, Bruce is the down-to-earth, quiet friend who seems to have put up with Simon’s quirky antics for far too long. Turner and Oberbeck fit their roles well; Turner stands out a bit more since Oberbeck mainly reacts to his friend’s antics, plus it’s trickier to play such an unlikable character. Asa does a great job portraying someone caught in a tricky situation, but I have to say Beatrice isn’t all that sympathetic either.

This movie takes place in New York City and various airports, showcasing the hassle of flying standby. Jason Chiu‘s cinematography is vibrant and well-lit, which is a nice change from the overly dark and moody look of many indie films. My main quibble is that the pacing feels a bit sluggish, which makes the short 90-minute runtime seem longer than it actually is. When it comes to exploring male friendship, I feel the story could have explored more than just Simon’s clingy and dependent personality, diving deeper into the guys’ insecurities and tension that arise from a lack of support for one another.

The Travel Companion - indie comedy

The conclusion doesn’t provide a tidy resolution, but I find that to be realistic. It wraps up on a hopeful note for one of the key characters, linking it back to the opening scene. Overall, The Travel Companion is a well-crafted feature debut, and its dry humor is both amusing and relatable. It’s well worth checking out when it’s playing in a theater near you.

3 out of 5 reels