"But, Gus, my love, I cannot tell you how thankful I am for our little infinity. I wouldn't trade it for the world. You gave me a forever within the numbered days, and I'm grateful."
SECTION I. DETAILS
Based on Book: The Fault In Our Stars
by Author: John Green
Film Director: Josh Boone
Distributed by: 20th Century Fox
Running Time: 126 minutes
Book/Film Synopsis: Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel's story is about to be completely rewritten.
SECTION II. RATING
4/5
SECTION III. RAW
If there's anyone I need to pat on the shoulder for a job well done, it wouldn't be John Green (author of the book by the same title), but it would be the Director, Josh Boone. Green has already garnered enough credits (for the success of the book alone), but this film is the director's handicraft - his masterpiece. I absolutely loved it. Certainly one of the best book to film adaptations yet.
I was all together swooned (by Gus), grateful (to be cancer-free), apprehensive (about the whole dying thing), and worried (for my emotional capability) while watching the movie. Perhaps thirty minutes in the film and I was already planning on re-watching it.
The actors were great, especially Shailene Woodley's overall performance. I enjoyed the humor in between scenes, as it kept the audience interested. From an outside perspective, TFIOS may seem like a cliche chick flick movie, but its cute and funny and unique in its own way. Of course there are some romantic scenes between our love interest, but don't worry, there's more to enjoy in the film than the occasional awkwardness.
I also have to give props to the pacing of the film. It wasn't too hurried, or anything information packed. It was taken slow and at ease, like bathing in the moonlight, but not too slow to bore anyone in the movie theater.
I'm sure I have more to say, so to read more... proceed below.
SECTION IV. ACTORS
Shailene Woodley was never my first choice to play Hazel Grace, not that I had anyone in mind. I just never really liked her, and I've always been transparent on that note (if you have happened to read my book to film discussion on Divergent). But I suppose TFIOS was her best performance yet. And I found myself beginning to love her. As an actor, she embodied the soul of Hazel Grace Lancaster. Her emotions felt so real, and her facial expressions were all a bullseye. Compared to Ansel Elgort, she's the shining star. Don't get me wrong, Ansel did Gus Waters's role justice, but it's nothing parallel to Shailene's performance. However, I also have to give it to Ansel for all his quirky facial expressions. It seemed too adorable to judge. Just enough spice to add to the humor.
If I take a few steps back, admittedly, it's Laura Dern (Hazel Grace's Mother/ Frannie Lancaster) that stood out to me most. She played the part oh-so-well that made me love her role in the film more than her role in the book. I mean, at this point, we have already established the point that we love both Hazel and Augustus, right? So if I may step out of the bubble, Laura Dern did the most record-breaking performance in this film.
Nat Wolff (Isaac), too, made a soothing impression on me. He's that boundary in between clichés, or that reminder that everyone has that pitiful-but-not-really-because-he's-an-ass kind of friend. His existence in the film/book just made the entire thing more grounded. I kind of hoped I saw more of Emily Peachey's (Monica/ Isaac's boyfriend) face though, rather than just making out with Isaac.
SECTION V. PROPS/SETTING
Nothing more contemporary than a contemporary film. I remember one side note from a friend of mine who happened to join me that afternoon when I saw TFIOS on the big screen. When it panned the city of Amsterdam, my friend asked me if the cast and crew really did go to Amsterdam to shoot the necessary scenes. My mind automatically paused to flash back on any previous fandom announcements. Did they or was it all just a big green-screen disappointment? (Though highly unlikely) Or maybe it was all shot in Canada instead? Until I saw this, "Shailene Woodley & Ansel Elgort Are Snuggled While Shooting The Fault In Our Stars In Amsterdam!" So I believe that proves it, the whole production did go to Amsterdam! AM-STER-DAM! However, from this article I read from Huffington Post, it is stated by Molly Hughes, production designer for The Fault In Our Stars, "I will tell you that we decided to build the Oranjee scene (Oranjee being the name of the restaurant Hazel and Gus dined in) as an interior because when I went to scout Amsterdam for exterior locations (as we only shot exteriors in Amsterdam and none of the interiors, including most of the Anne Frank House) we realized that it would be FREEZING and dark and likely raining in October, which doesn’t bode well for a romantic dinner." So half and half, that's fine! It wasn't that obvious.
On a lighter note, did you see Hazel's oxygen tank? Oh wow, that is so portable compared to what I had first imagined. While I read the book, again, about a year ago, I sort of imagined a literal oxygen tank. You know, the same tanks you see on Hospital Emergency Rooms. Big. Greasy. Green. I had to slap myself when I saw the trailer. How could a skinny teenager able to roll the same tank across Indianapolis, not to mention fly to Amsterdam? Of course it had to be smaller, more compact, and most especially, portable to a backpack.
I mean, I had nothing more to say in terms of props or the setting. It's perfectly constructed, that even the individual bedrooms of our lovebirds were orchestrated beautifully.
SECTION VI. CINEMATOGRAPHY
If you have read Section I of this post, and I suppose you have, you'd remember me praising the Director, or maybe even his cinematographer if he's anyone else but himself. I really believe that TFIOS as a film wouldn't be as much of a blockbuster if it weren't for how it was put into motion. The concept and the technique wowed me, more than anything else in the film. Yes, that's including the dialogues. The speech bubble was just the perfect way to frame the quirky exchange of text messages. Even the momentarily pauses (of background sounds) and zooming gave the right amount of emphasis on the actor's facial expressions. But it wasn't just that, it was the when to pause and zoom part. It's like they mastered the entire story, and had plotted carefully how to execute it. I can only imagine the Director dissecting every aspect of the book and envisioning a perfect visual presentation.
Even the flashback part (on Hazel's cancer journey) fit perfectly on the right spot. It's like finding the dog's itchy part on its stomach, making it wiggle its leg back and forth in pleasure. My apologies if you don't own a dog, therefore my analogy must have confused you by now.
However, I did wish they panned more of The Imperial Affliction's text. Yes, we did get to see "Pain demands to be felt" encircled on one of the pages. But I hoped to see how the infamous ending was presented. Up until now, I still wonder what sentence was cut in the middle with on the ending of The Imperial Affliction, which clearly served as a huge boost in the plot.
SECTION VII. SOUNDTRACK
Need I say more on Ed Sheeran's All of the Stars? Just listen to it and tell me it's not perfect for the movie. Some soundtracks seemed created before the movie, that the movie is the thing trying desperately to adjust to the song. But no, All of the Stars by Ed Sheeran was made for the movie. The lyrics were perfectly constructed from Hazel Grace's point of view, like she wrote it herself after she's accepted the loss. Like she's okay after all, which is always nice knowing, since we all had that same question anyway (about Hazel's welfare after the book ended. Oh the irony).
SECTION VIII. BOOK TO FILM
I would note the differences (from the book to the film) I've listed down myself, but I can't be too sure since I haven't re-read the book since last year. So instead, I made a little research from Huffington Post. Feel free to check it out below:
SPOILER ALERT!
1. In the book, Augustus Waters' parents do not let him take Hazel Grace Lancaster downstairs unsupervised to watch "V for Vendetta." Instead, they let Gus show her the basement and then watch the Natalie Portman film in the living room. In the movie, Gus and Hazel go straight downstairs without any parental guidance.
2. John Green writes that Hazel goes to visit Isaac at the hospital following his eye surgery. In the movie, she doesn't. (And we're sad because NAT WOLFF!)
3. In the young adult novel, Hazel has a friend named Kaitlyn, who is up to speed on her budding romance with Gus, as well as the latest fashions. In the movie, Kaitlyn doesn't exist.
4. Augustus' former girlfriend Caroline Mathers, who died of brain cancer a few years earlier, weighs heavily on Hazel's mind in the book. In the movie, there's no mention of Caroline or the effect her death had on Gus.
5. Although it exists in the movie, Hazel doesn't put her "Desperately Lonely Swing Set” up for sale, like she does in the book. #AllTheTears
6. The movie left out an important scene in which Hazel and Mrs. Lancaster hear Gus crying and yelling at his mom before they leave on their trip to Amsterdam. In the book, that conversation foreshadows the return of Gus' cancer.
7. In the film, Gus tells Hazel he loves her while they're at dinner at Oranjee in Amsterdam. Originally, Gus says, “I’m in love with you, and I know that love is just a shout into the void etc., etc.," on the plane ride to Amsterdam. Precious.
8. Speaking of Oranjee, in the book, Gus and Hazel enjoy a picturesque dinner outside, overlooking the elm trees on the canal. In Josh Boone's film version, Gus and Hazel eat inside the restaurant, although the meal still includes champagne and dragon carrot risotto. "We decided to build the Oranjee scene as an interior because when I went to scout Amsterdam for exterior locations, we realized that it would be freezing and dark and likely raining in October, which doesn’t bode well for a romantic dinner. We therefore built the interior in Pittsburgh," production designer Molly Hughes tells HuffPost Entertainment. "I hope that the fact that Gus and Hazel were surrounded by fantastical trees and candles and lights helped create an equally romantic setting!"
9. Gus’ sort of obnoxious sisters, their "banker husbands" and rambunctious sons don't get much (if any) screen time in the movie, although in the book, Hazel mentions them quite frequently as Gus undergoes cancer treatments.
10. In the book, Hazel finds Gus mumbling in his sleep after he, in her words, "pissed the bed." It's a vulnerable moment when she realizes Gus' cancer is truly taking its toll. This scene is not in the film, but the one in which she finds him in another unfortunate state at the gas station is.
11. For the movie, Boone decided to leave out Hazel's disdain for all the Facebook comments people wrote following Gus' death. In the book, Hazel is infuriated by all the clichéd sentiments and rashly posts something critical of another commenter, assuming Gus would have despised the sympathy notes.
12. In the book, Hazel searches everywhere for that "letter" Gus wrote for her. She looks at his parents' house and on his computer, before Gus' father tells her there are some torn-out pages of his notebook missing. After having no luck finding them, she decides to email Peter Van Houten's assistant, Lidewij, to see if Gus sent the pages to their "favorite" author. As it turns out, Gus did send them to Van Houten and Lidewij emails the attachments to Hazel to read. In the movie, Hazel finds the pages in her car after she's bombarded by Van Houten at Gus' funeral.
SECTION IX. RECOMMENDATIONS
Being one of the best book to film adaptations, I do recommend this film to anyone who is young at heart, looking for something cute, fun, and bittersweet love story. For those who have read the book, don't fear too much. Watch the film because it carries its own identity. You'll absolutely love it! Don't fret over the omitted scenes.
For those who haven't read the book, I may warn you, if you're not a fan of cliché chick flicks, you may find this film boring, regardless of the humor and the quirky dialogues. But I still suggest you give it a try. The film also uses some unfamiliar words, and book citations, so if you truly despise the literary world, you may find yourself confused throughout the film, or worse, annoyed. However, if you're open minded, good for you. Bring a dictionary app, and a packet of tissue!
Before anything else, be sure to watch the trailer first!
Thanks for reading.
Cheers,
Lilah Gran
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