Groundbreaking Study of the Experience of Cancer

Rating: 9/10 (23 September 2014)

FAULT IN OUR STARS is a quite remarkable film, if only for the stunning performances of Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort in the leading roles as two teenagers suffering from terminal cancer. There might have been a temptation to sentimentalize this story in the manner of LOVE STORY (1972), but director Josh Boone manages to create instead a story of remarkable poignancy while remaining aware of just how destructive the awareness that one has cancer can be.
It's often difficult to explain to non-sufferers the effects of cancer, not only physically but emotionally. Despite the well- meaning intentions of her parents (Laura Dern, Sam Trammell), Hazel (Woodley) cannot really communicate her true feelings to them. She is not simply an "Ugly Duckling" whose illness renders her somehow 'different' from her classmates; she is a living, breathing person who wants to be regarded just like anyone else. The fact that she has an illness is irrelevant; in the limited time she has available, she wants to live life to the full. This is precisely what Gus (Elgort) and fellow cancer-sufferer Isaac (Nat Wolff) understand, and hence the three of them become almost inseparable. When Hazel and Gus are together, they not only gain strength from one another but learn how to treat the world on their own terms, and not necessarily listen to their parents. Boone's handling of these sequences is quite brilliant, especially the sequence where the two teenagers hug and kiss in bed.
In the end, however, the realities of cancer leads to a sad ending; but is it really 'sad'? According to a non-cancer suffer, it might be considered as such, but to Hazel it represents something else, something intangible. She might experience severe emotional distress, but that experience gives her a renewed faith in life. Cancer requires people to rethink their lives and try to approach each day in different ways, to reconstruct themselves and to become more mindful of the world around them. This is what Hazel manages to do, which is why we feel so supportive of her.
FAULT IN OUR STARS is perhaps the first movie I have seen to approach the experience of cancer in a way that non-cancer suffers might understand. It is a groundbreaking piece; if it could be shown to anyone and everyone who has encountered the disease, it might change their lives for the better.