For a deep movie, a lot of saccharine moments

Rating: 6/10 (15 June 2014)

I spent a lot of time checking my watch, wondering when this movie was really going to get rolling. When it did, it was good, but the whole movie could have used some more editing. Also, I found it had for me an annoying 'life is beautiful' postcard-y sense about it for such a difficult topic of kids dying of cancer. There was little difficulty or real conflict in the first three quarters of the movie. Laura Dern's talent was completely wasted. Willem Dafoe put in a fine performance as a crotchety, hateful writer, but it wasn't enough to add any real depth to the movie.
I wish I could say I liked it more. Hazel, Augustus, and Josh came off as likable, real people, although A's perfect attitude began to bug me as the movie wore on.