Jojo made me cry ... again ... Loved it regardless!

Rating: 9/10 (27 June 2016)

This is my first review on here so bear with me please. I actually don't view this as a romantic movie/story. For me this is a movie about life, choices and the influence we have on one another.
I understand that the main topic in the story is sensitive and controversial to say at the least. I also get that some people will be offended by the outcome of the story. However, I do think that as much as those people are entitled to their own opinion (as am I and anyone else who has seen or read the story), so is everyone else in life in general, which proves the point that Will is entitled to his own opinion and choice in life.
First let me start off with the fact that I read the book when it came out and it had a huge impact on me and the way I thought about the value of life. You see ... everyone has dreams, goals and to some extend expectations of the life we want to lead. When for some reason all of that is taken away from us, I can understand that it would be difficult for a person to find a positive way of viewing an impossibly negative adverse situation.
I love (really love) the fact that there always will be people like Lou who find a way to make any negative into a positive and that they will do their utter best to spread their love of life and positive attitude(even if they're not aware they do it). I also love that Will, even though his mind is set to end his life, appreciates and respects the effort Lou is making to make him stay and appreciate the little things (or the big ones like her love for him) in life.
What really got me thinking is that everyone would think that Will is selfish for wanting to take his own life. Generally speaking if someone takes the easy way out it would be viewed as a cowardly thing to do or a selfish act. However this is not really that simple, because Will is in a situation most of us will never be able to comprehend. Yes, there are definitely examples of people (Stephen Hawking) who have found a motivational way to live through such a tragedy, but not everyone is the same. Not everyone is able to move past their feelings, the physical discomfort and the limitations placed upon the person by such a situation.
Come to think of it, isn't it selfish for everyone else to want Will to stay alive for them, while he is in pain and has no way to live the life he has always wanted to live? Isn't it just as bad to not respect someone's wishes when we can never know how it feels to be them?
Generally I believe that the story had a positive outcome for everyone involved. Even though Will chose to let go of life, something positive remained. Something that will have Louisa pursue life in a different way than she had ever thought of before.
Anyway ... I can go on and on about the different themes, motifs & symbols in this story. It's rich and it certainly gave me plenty to think about. I hope that many people will get to fall in love with the story (just like I did), even though it's heavily loaded and most definitely hard to take in.
Thanks for taking the time to read this!