Never has a film based on a bestselling young adult book done so right by its source material. The Fault in Our Stars, the book version, is probably my favorite book of all time. Believe me, if this movie did not do right by it, I would have something to say about it. Thankfully, the movie perfectly encapsulated the heart and soul of the John Green book and then some.
Everyone knows that this is going to be a heartbreaker going into the theater. I mean, really, it seems like it is going to be all about cancer and I'm sure many of the people who went in that did not read the book knew that (spoiler) someone was going to die. The filmmakers, however, did something I would not have thought possible on the big screen: they made the movie primarily about love. There were parts where I even forgot about Hazel's cannula and Augustus' prosthetic leg. This is the power of the movie. Yes, the two main characters have cancer, but this is just part of their story.
The reason that this movie works is its two leads, Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort. Woodley plays Hazel Grace Lancaster, a teenage girl with thyroid cancer with mets in her lungs, and Elgort plays Augustus Waters, an 18-year old once having osteosarcoma but now 14-months NEC (no evidence of cancer). These two characters meet at a cancer support group and fall in love "slowly, then all at once." Though slightly corny as that may sound, the actors themselves bring so much truth and heart to their respective roles. Even in the most heartbreaking and devastating parts of the movie, these two young actors continuously bring out the heart and soul that book is famous for.
Do not get me wrong: you will probably cry. A lot. Seriously, towards the end of the movie, it felt like I was just getting punched in the gut over and over. I mean, I was kind of crying the whole time, but it really starts to hurt when Isaac (played by scene-stealer Nat Wolff) starts talking about robot eyes (for those who haven't seen it yet, you will understand that reference, I promise) and then just keeps coming from there. But at the end, when you feel like you cannot take anymore emotional pain, the movie let you feel a deep sense of hope; it makes you feel like any life has meaning, no matter how small it feels.
Thank you, John Green for your perfect book. And thank you Hazel Grace and Augustus for making me feel hope even in a world full of pain.
Bottom Line: Equal parts heart wrenching and hopeful, this is a film that will last until infinity in the hearts and minds of those lucky enough to witness it, no matter how long that infinity may be.
Grade: A+
