Based on the best-selling teen novel by John Green, The Fault In Our Stars is a romantic
drama depicting the story of Hazel and Gus (Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort),
both saddled with debilitating afflictions. Despite their constant companions
of an oxygen tank and a prosthetic leg respectively, their mutual love for the
unconventional and shared acerbic wit brings them inexorably together, whilst
Hazel’s wavering condition threatens to pull them apart.
One of the best things a film can do is prove you wrong, to
show you something that you didn’t expect from something you thought would only
irritate you…and that’s exactly what The
Fault In Our Stars is. The trailer made it out to be another heartless,
airbrushed Hollywood romance that simply used the cancer element to gain cheap
weeps from the audience. In reality, the film earns those tears (and trust me,
there will be a lot of them) and the very instant it seems like the story is
going in a predictable and wishy-washy direction, it picks up an unexpected
plot development and beats you over the head for thinking so little of it.
The greatest strength the film has to offer is Shailene
Woodley: having been not only unconvinced but very annoyed by her in Divergent, I still find it hard to believe
that it is actually the same actress. Her performance shows a level of maturity
and devotion to her character that is astounding, retaining the innocence of
someone who does the best with what they have and the tortured soul of a young
woman desperately clinging to life lest it toss her into the void. Ansel Elgort
also carries a similar degree of child-like innocence as Gus in order to stay
level with Hazel and help her make the best of unbearable circumstances. The
two leads bounce off each other well during the initial awkward phase and by
the end I think you’ll be hard pressed to find anyone who doesn’t utterly believe
that the two are hopelessly in love.
A healthy degree of black comedy is also woven into the film,
split between the two leads and Nat Wolff as Isaac, a close friend of Gus who
is slowly losing his eyesight. Laura Dern (who we’ve seen far too little of
lately) is endearingly believable as the concerned and protective mother while
Willem Dafoe lends an almost nihilistic air to the proceedings which is kept
in-check to prevent it spilling over into the main narrative. The focus is kept
almost constantly on the two lovers, the cinematography remaining intimate but
not intrusive throughout, not bothering itself with over-extravagant
establishing shots but keeping the eye of the audience entirely at the level of
each character.
The film is not entirely perfect, no matter how hard it
tries. The opening twenty minutes feel a little tangled as the film attempts to
balance the realistic tone with some very awkwardly written dialogue, and some
otherwise heartfelt moments are almost ruined by a selection of
pseudo-intellectual and overly philosophical statements that probably worked
fine in the book, but on-screen feel forced and unnatural.
The Fault In Our Stars
is a deeply felt, heart-breaking story of two people who find comfort and peace
in the arms of one another despite fearful odds. Soaring past average
expectations thanks to powerhouse performances, an unflinching but
understanding attitude towards illness and some of the most beautiful moments of
recent cinematic history, it should not be missed. Bring plenty of tissues.
4 Stars