Great movieÂ… I mean great

Rating: 10/10 (7 June 2014)

I saw this in the Philippines where every seat was taken and people even sat on the floor and at the back they were standing. I sat in the front row as I often do for quiet but every seat filled there too. Somehow the locals knew it was good even second day of release. I was told the book was very popular there. In fact people were calling out the names of characters as they made their first appearance. The ingenuous response of the Filipino audience was almost as touching as the movie itself. I am a bloke and even before I felt sad, tears were streaming. I have never experienced that before. Weeping before the sad bits came. I can't account for it. And I usually don't cry being a man and all. If you don't cry during this you would have to be a sociopath. It is beautifully put together. What a movie. It is corny of course but sophisticated heartfelt corn and not actually overdone. The acting has been acknowledged as great and yes the female lead was excellent. But I was most impressed with the male lead Ansel Elgort. This guy for me stole the whole movie with his performance. He was magnificent especially since he was only19 when he did this movie. All the acting and photography was excellent. William Dafoe also did a great job as you would expect. I thought Hazel Grace's mother was performed exceptionally well. As I came out of the show holding back the tears there was a long line of people waiting for the next session.