‘Rent Free’ Review – Fernando Andrés’ Charming Coming-Of-Age Comedy [Tribeca 2024]

Life doesn’t always pan out how you’ve planned it. Accidents happen, people change their minds, or you do something to get yourself tossed out on the street. These things happen, and they can be tough to get through. It takes creativity and desperation to climb out of the hole. It also takes leaning on those around you along the way.

Fernando Andrés’ latest film Rent Free tests that last aspect in extreme fashion. The coming-of-age comedy follows lifelong best friends Ben (Jacob Roberts) and Jordan (David Trevińo) as they navigate financial struggles and inconsistent living situations. The film opens with Jordan helping Ben move into a room in New York City where an old college buddy has offered Ben a spot free of charge. As the first night wears on, Ben does something that ends with him being kicked out and moving back to Austin to stay with Jordan and his girlfriend. They both ultimately wind up without a place to stay and concoct a plan to hop from house to house rent-free for a whole year to save up enough cash to move together back to New York.

Most of the film takes Ben and Jordan to different friends’ homes while they crash on the couch and pretend to act like they’ll be getting new jobs any day now. Each house brings its challenges and luxuries, but the pair continually do things to move to a new location quicker than expected. The story doesn’t quite develop much more than the physical movements from place to place, but feels more like a hangout than a true narrative. Ben and Jordan get placed in a new environment every few days and that puts more stress on their relationship and dire situation, but in time brings little more to the table in terms of plot. These episodes of seemingly actual experience bring a sense of humanity and relatability that is often difficult to achieve. There’s no need to suspend belief or reality, this is a portrait of real people trying to get by.

The heart of Rent Free is found in Ben and Jordan’s friendship and how close they stick together through everything that gets thrown at them. It’s clear that they would be getting nowhere without each other’s support. Even if one of them screws up, there’s no judgment or longstanding anger. They work through it and are better friends for it. Admittedly, much of this working through problems together comes out in the form of hilarious insults and analogies, but that doesn’t phase either of them. That’s just how they operate. Roberts and Treviño’s chemistry makes this film work and are amazingly believable as lifelong pals.

The way these characters live their lives is very revealing of a certain sect of today’s culture, particularly in younger spaces. Ben and Jordan don’t feel shame about their plan to mooch off of others for an extended period of time, yet they don’t have a sense of entitlement either. Their carefree attitude allows them to accept help when they can find it and not let their pride get in the way. Even with a low budget, they seek out ways to let loose, or even give in to sudden hookups and the occasional hard drug. The way writer-director Fernando Andrés writes these characters reflects the mindset of an entire generation, one that rebels against a classic achievement or wealth-based sense of self-worth.

Rent Free is a charming coming-of-age comedy that features solid performances in its two leads and taps into an emotional awareness that only a younger director could achieve. Genuinely funny and sweet moments combine to create a satisfying hangout movie in the vein of Cooper Raiff’s Shithouse or Richard Linklater’s Everybody Wants Some! where the vibe is the story.

Rent Free held its World Premiere as a part of the US Narrative Competition section of the 2024 Tribeca Festival.

Director: Fernando Andrés

Screenwriters: Fernando Andrés, Tyler Rugh

Rated: NR

Runtime: 93m