"Live boldly. Push yourself. Don't settle."

Rating: 8/10 (26 August 2017)

Admittedly, I clicked this movie mainly due to Sam Clafflin. Thinking it would just be another cheesy romantic dramedy, I wasn't able to account for the tears rolling down my cheeks at the unexpected ending. This is definitely one of those stories that will leave a mark on me and join my other top 3 romantic films Amelie, Jeux d'Enfants and Man Up
What set this ending apart from all the others with forgettable fate was how it balanced out the themes of redemption and sacrifice. Will's pre- accident life/pre-Louisa encounter was perfect, he was happy, successful and on top of the world in everything. Lousia's pre-Will encounter life was ordinary: she had a stable boyfriend and a generally good life but was unable to really explore the world and find herself due to financial and self imposed obligations. Will's pre-accident character would never have noticed Louisa; their worlds were too different.
Their encounter gradually shifts the scales towards equilibrium. Now they're with each other every single day, their worlds opening up and slowly colliding as they share their experiences with each other. She learns about different cultures through French cinema, classical music, horse racing; he learns about the joyful simplicity of being carefree through her eccentricity and quirk. Their perspectives slowly change as they develop a mutual affection that transcends common romantic love, the type that always seems to hinge around lust and sexual attraction. Of course, there are selfish elements to their love: she needs the job for money; likes to feel needed, and he needs her companionship. But all of that is massively drowned out by the rich unconditional affection and care they develop for each other through their shared adventures. The relationship blossoms organically, and never once felt forced.
The ending ultimately re-balances the karmic scale. It didn't give us a happily ever after ending because that would be massively unbalanced: you can't have your cake and eat it too. He dies, because in his view, however warped and cowardly you may think that is, it's the only way out of his pain. But his death symbolically paves the way for her new life. She's no longer trapped because, more importantly than the bit of money he left her, her meeting him opened her mind and eyes to the amazing possibilities in life. It wasn't the fancy vacations, French bakeries or luxuries being associated with wealth, it was the raw feeling of living and taking any experience to its fullest, like the unnervingly beautiful thunderstorm they watched together.
Meeting him, in essence, freed her spirit. And she is now able to live her life to its full potential, in the same way he had lived his perfect life before his accident. And similarly, Will died happy and as contented as he could be. One would argue more content than before his accident, because he found for the first time, as brief as it was, a glimpse of love and affection stemming from a rare acceptance so deep as she was willing to put aside her own feelings, accept his life-ending decision and be with him until the end. They "saved" each other, inspired in each other hope and even though it wasn't enough to change Will's mind, and even though they didn't end up together, their encounter left a mark in each other, one that transcends time and death. It's really the purest form of love.
On a macro level, I love everything about the themes; they echo my own philosophies on life and love. Even on the granular level, the few stand-out emotional performances more than made up for some of the predictable writing and tropes. In particular, the scene when Will revealed the pain of living in his current condition to Lou, that he can't accept her love and be with her like how he wanted. So much kudos to Sam's stunning performance, it was not one bit under or overacted, and I really felt all of the character's unspoken pain in those few minutes.
I can understand controversies the ending created; some say it sends a bad message. But similar to Louisa's reaction to the ending of "Of Gods and Men", where she cried out incredulously how she didn't agreed with it, and how the main character should have stayed but all the whilst admitting she still loved the movie: that's how I felt about this ending. I didn't agree with Will's decision. He should have stayed. But I didn't take it as something negative and definitely not preaching an anti-disabled lifestyle moral either. People can't fathom why this mega rich pretty-boy wallow in so much self pity and decides to end his life when he seems to be on his way heading out of the trenches.
Of course, if you were to look at this without immersing yourself in his shoes, it's tempting to say nothing about his decision makes any sense. And that's pretty true:ample psychology research tells us that the future self we envision ourselves to lead is often very far from what actually happens. What likely would happen is Will adapting to this lifestyle and living happily with Louisa. But that wasn't the point of the story. He couldn't see past his disability, no matter how much love there was.
This wasn't meant to be a finding-hope-after-tragedy type of movie, and frankly, it would have fallen into the same vein as dozens of others with similar story lines if it played out that way. I took this movie as a coming of age story; love was just the undertone. Ultimately it is about finding your inner spark, and igniting that spark in others you've met. But regarding the romantic aspect, it was more than successful in its attempt to portray an ephemeral but pure unconditional bond between two people who never was meant to be together in the stark bitterness of reality.