A re-watchable cancer-included romance

Rating: 8/10 (17 February 2016)

The relationships were beautifully natural. In this kind of film, we've come to expect the weird, tense and/or overdramatic family/friends with the cancer sufferer the mature-beyond-their-years stable centre of the universe. I'm not going to say that Isaac wasn't a little loopy but hey, we all have one slightly crazy friend, right! I loved watching the friendship and then romance develop between Hazel and Augustus. Again, it was natural, it was fun, it dealt with the reality of their lives and it was marred with tragedy from the get-go.
Living with cancer or another long standing/ life threatening illness has generated a lot of fact and fiction stories, books, movies and documentaries in recent years. What was nice/different about this story was that everyone involved was already at peace with the fact that Hazel would die before her time. There were no big arguments around this fact. It was a sad reality the family lived with, and that was the focus of the story – how they lived despite this. Hazel's concern was that her parents didn't stop when she did go; she wanted them to keep living and not lose purpose. One of the best moments in the film is when they reveal to her that they are preparing for when she is gone.and this makes her happy, not storm out like a drama queen! And can I just say how nice it was to have the protagonist in a relationship that doesn't fall apart when some earth shattering news is dropped! No sad trying to get on with life montage, no big scene argument, just a simple conversation on a bench which pushes the story in a new direction. A relationship which is more about giving than taking, making the other person happy rather than simply enjoying the fact they make you feel good. Yes please.
And unlike My Sister's Keeper, I could quite happily watch it again next week rather than waiting a few years! Full review at confessionsofastorylover.wordpress.com