Friday

Craig and Smokey are two guys in Los Angeles hanging out on their porch on a Friday afternoon, smoking and drinking, looking for something to do.

Critics were divided on Friday at release — professional reviews landed in mixed-to-average territory even as the film found a warm popular audience. Where detractors saw loose construction and little directorial ambition, defenders pointed to the genuine chemistry between Ice Cube and Chris Tucker and a raucous, unpretentious comic energy that carried the thin premise. The gap between its middling critical reception and its enduring cult status is itself the story.