The Fault in Our Stars (PG-13)
03/07/14 21:43 Filed in: 2014
Starring: Shailene Woodley
June 2014
This review was originally tweeted in Real-time from the back row of a movie theater and appears @BackRoweReviews. Though efforts were made to tease rather than ruin this movie’s memorable lines and moments, some spoilers may exist in the following evaluation. The original tweets appear in black, while follow-up comments appear in red. For concerns over objectionable content, please first refer to one of the many parental movie guide websites. All ratings are based on a four star system. Happy reading!
“A roller coaster that only goes up.” Where’s the fun in that?
And, technically, is that even a real roller coaster? I mean, most of the enjoyment comes from the drops, twists and turns, right?
Gus introduces his parents to “Just Hazel.”
Actually, Gus introduces her as “Hazel Grace.” Gus’ dad calls her “Just Hazel.” Apologies for the inaccuracy and confusion.
Okay is the new always.
Gus takes Hazel to a skeleton playground for a picnic.
Skeletons signify death…overdetermined imagery considering the movie’s subject matter? The bit about Hazel wasting her wish is very amusing, though.
The conversation on the “sad swing set” contains some killer dialog...and some incredibly raw emotion.
The grenade metaphor is particularly powerful. And speaking of metaphors…
Gus is told to put out his metaphor on the plane.
A non-metaphor flight? Airlines are getting so picky these days. Next thing you know, they’ll have non-humor flights. Oh wait, I’ve been on a few of those.
Answer day in Amsterdam.
A very unromantic location for the first kiss.
Which is the irony of the scene. If Hazel wasn’t breathless after her long ascent up several flights of stairs, I’m sure she was after that kiss.
The pre-funeral scene is deeply moving. The line about a “limited infinity” is staggering visceral.
Any criticism of the movie’s bent toward sentimentality will have this scene in its crosshairs. The sole purpose of this melodramatic sequence is to tug on the heartstrings...and it works like a charm. Correction: “little infinity.”
Hazel experiences her great and terrible 10.
Wow, that last “okay” went through me like an electric shock.
As a key ingredient in the title, director Josh Boone cleverly uses stars as a recurring theme/symbol throughout the movie. How fitting that the movie should conclude with Hazel looking up at the starry host with its scintillating beauty reflecting in her eyes.
Final analysis: a film preoccupied with death that somehow ends up being life-affirming.
A sobering reminder of the brevity of life and the things that matter most in it.
Rating: 3 out of 4 stars. Could’ve been melodramatic, but strikes all of the right chords emotionally.
Based on the wildly popular book of the same name by John Green, Fault follows a courageous young woman on her mission to discover why she is made to suffer from a terminal condition. Although emotions here are real, and occasionally raw, some will undoubtedly find the more melodramatic aspects of the plot to be unbearably schmaltzy. To those hardened critics I say, “Get a heart!” In my estimation there’s only one scene (mentioned above) that even comes close to being maudlin, and the overall story seems far less interested in trumpeting the injustices of individuals living in the throes of cancer and fully invested in telling an intimate story of one person’s plight and how others in her orbit are affected by her infirmity. The story, adapted by Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber, is never contrived or stilted and adroitly avoids the mawkish pitfalls that so many other films of this kind unwittingly stumble into. Besides the exceptional performances of the star-crossed lovers, Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort, the film’s greatest asset is its dialog, presumably lifted wholesale from the book. I remember hearing one such line in the trailer, “You trying to keep your distance from me in no way lessens my affection for you.” I thought, Wow this is going to make a great movie. Fortunately, my initial assessment of the film holds up thanks to a movie brimming with such great lines and accompanied by genuine performances and a truly touching story. This certainly isn’t an easy film to watch at times, but its veracity reveals the bitter reality that fate can’t be cajoled or controlled. Barring a few sentimental moments, this movie presents an inspiring and heartwarming story that’s really hard to find fault with.