Friends: Season 04  (1997)

Theatrical Release Information:
Friends: Season 04

Resolving the cliffhanging finale of season three, the fourth season of Friends opens with Phoebe (Lisa Kudrow) learning the true identity of her biological mother (played by Teri Garr). Elsewhere, Chandler (Matthew Perry) and Joey (Matt LeBlanc) have a major falling out when both roommates fall in love with the same girl; Phoebe's half-brother, Frank (Giovanni Ribisi), asks her to be the surrogate mother to his children; and, trying to uphold their new "just friends, lovers no more" relationship, Rachel (Jennifer Aniston) and Ross (David Schwimmer) agree to start dating other people. Rachel's choice, albeit temporary, is Joshua (played by actress Aniston's real-life boyfriend at the time, Tate Donovan), whom she meets in her capacity as a department-store buyer, while Ross begins squiring a dour Englishwoman named Emily Waltham (Helen Baxendale). Ultimately, Ross and Emily decide to get married, clearing the stage for the season's riotous two-part finale, set in England. As the wedding ceremony approaches, Chandler and Monica (Courteney Cox) stop beating around the bush about their mutual attraction and end up sleeping together; and while taking the marriage vows in church, Ross lets slip that he's still obsessed with Rachel! Friends continued to reap healthy profits and ratings throughout its fourth season, closing out the year as America's fourth most-watched program. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide