Pretty Good

Rating: 9/10 (19 June 2014)

First of all, I don't think this movie deserves the reviews that it has been getting. I know this novel isn't the most dramatic thing in the world, but I still think that a few of the scenes in the movie could've been a little better. For example, the Peter Van Houten scene was too crammed. In my head, I envisioned the room being big, with a gray sofa on which Peter Van Houten was drinking and talking to Hazel and Augustus. In the movie, there's this guy in a wooden chair talking to Hazel and Augustus in this room that is so small. Hazel and Gus are sitting on the couch that I envisioned Peter would have been sitting on. Anyway, enough about that. I did like the acting. I thought that Shailene Woodley did an incredible a fat job of portraying Hazel Grace Lancaster. She did a great job in the scenes where she had to cry or be very happy. I think those emotional scenes, she did very well on. On the other hand, I think that Ansel Elgort could've done a better job in those emotional scenes. I don't know if that is his way of portraying Gus' sense of humor, or if that is just fine that they cast the wrong guy to play Augustus Waters. For example, in the scene where Gus calls Hazel asking for help when he's at the gas station, he kind of just threw up. I think they could've done a better job of having him be throwing his body around in pain or crying. That's just what I think. You guys might disagree with me and think that Ansel did a good job, but I just think they could've found a better Augustus Waters. Let's go back on the topic of Peter. I imagine Peter as being a fat, obnoxious drunk. With their choice of Willem Dafoe as playing Peter Van Houten, I think it ruins the point of the character. Willem is kind of a skinny guy who has a beard and kind of looks obnoxious, but I think they should've gone with someone who had a little more weight on them. Plus, Willem didn't give me the vibe that Peter Van Houten gave me when I was reading the book. It must sound like I'm a pretty negative guy, but here are some good things about the movie. I like how Hazel is narrating throughout the story. I liked all of Gus' jokes and how he would annoy Hazel. I also like that they spent a great deal of time in Amsterdam. The movie really spent a lot of time there, which I thought was great and further developed Hazel and Gus' relationship. I gave this movie a 9 out of 10 because it's just such a good story. I hope you guys found this review useful, and be sure to think about all the suggestions that I made to the movie.