Sad

Rating: 6/10 (18 June 2014)

If you need a good cry, this movie is for you. You know going in you're going to a "this can't last long" love story.
In addition to using every sad trick in the current dying youth arsenal this effort goes beyond and even calls on Anne Frank references in case there is still a dry eye the house.
Perhaps the movie works too hard and too long to use one more Kleenex. How many "eulogy" scenes does one character need? Good thing Hazel or Gus didn't have a dog or it wouldn't have made it through the movie.
The performances are easier to watch then the subject matter. The young leads will be mentioned in Golden Globe circles. Laura Dern, the second best actor in her family gets better with age. William Dafoe can't be as bad as written. His one sour note performance and implausible popping in as the mail man felt contrived.
A good score and use of the Amsterdam locations lift spirits.
Dealing with cancer, the death of a child, and the loss of a friend are tough subjects to explore. Perhaps the movie is actually soft and romantic compared to the truth. After all as Tom Cruise once said, "you can't handle the truth".