I had heard good things about the book "The Fault In Our Stars," but I was skeptical to believe them because it was in the teen fiction area of the bookstore and I am not a chick flick fan; however, I read it anyway, ended up really liking it and really looking forward to the movie. I went to see it tonight and putting aside sitting in the front row and also spilling red juice all over my boyfriend's new jersey, this is what I thought:
First the actors/actresses, Shailene Woodley is absolutely beautiful. Not in an obviously pretty way, especially with her short hair, but as me and my boyfriend decided, there's just something very captivating about her. Her performance as Hazel Grace was nothing short of perfect. Some people have said their think her character is cold and unlikable, but I think her wit and sarcasm was portrayed very true to the character in the book and personally, I think it was really likable. Ansel Elgort was a bit dorkier than I expected and I don't quite swoon for his looks the way other girls seem to (a bunch of thirteen year olds in the audience "ooo-ing" and "ahhh-ing" when he takes his shirt off of course), but his acting was still very good. It doesn't quite match Shailene's, but he's a likable character and also did it well. To be fair, all of the acting was spot on and a pleasure to watch. I don't think any of them will receive awards simply because this film is associated with being "just" a chick flick, but it's a lot more than that.
The story itself was good and of course I pretty well knew everything that was going to happen, but unlike so many films before it that go from book to movie, this was a perfect portrayal of the literary counterpart. It's a movie of innocent and young love from two people who are dealing with very mature issues. Done before, kind of like "a Walk to Remember," but this is soo much better. It's much more raw and everything about it almost made it seem like I was watching something real unfold rather than just a work of fiction. I won't go into detail for fear of spoiling it (as if many people here and gonna watch a chick flick anyway, ha), but it's not the basic run-of-the-house chick flick that I'm sure many expected it to be.
So yep, the acting for me gets a 10/10 and the movie itself gets a 9/10. It's not ****, but it's just entertaining, emotional, funny, sad... Yah. It's really good, and even my boyfriend did NOT want to see it, but he said he almost cried like eight times and thought it was the best girly movie he has ever seen. Never heard an audience cry so much either!
