Checked out the new Netflix teen romance movie All the Bright Places. This one is based on a YA novel I haven’t read but shares a lot of DNA with the book and film version of John Green’s The Fault In Our Stars (only less erudite and 100% fewer cancer deaths). It’s similar but not the same so if you liked Fault, you should like this one.
All the Bright Places is about a girl (played by Elle Fanning) who recently lost her sister in a traffic accident. And it’s about a boy (played by Justice Smith) who finds her standing on the bridge where her sister died. He takes it upon himself to save her… not just from a long fall but from her self-isolation and depression. Of course, it turns out he might need saving too.
This is an earnest, good-natured movie starring two fresh-faced actors with all the teeth. Just huge toothy smiles in their pretty/handsome faces. Probably couldn’t have gotten two more charismatic actors to play young people in love. They are the selling point of this movie as they are very good actors who click together.
I guess my only major complaint is that the movie starts off not so great. It’s mopey and somber and Justice Smith’s character comes off too strong, too arrogant, too in-her-face. I just wanted to tell him to shut up and leave the poor girl alone… she said she doesn’t need help, so just go away, you shiny-toothed teenager. But that’s the angle on the movie… he’s right, she needs help, so it’s just a story you can go with it maybe. And, hey, it works out once it gets past the awkward, angsty intro.
The flick is often very happy and often very sad… and not in a corny, melodramatic way. I think it earns a few shed tears with its honest approach to sadness and depression. But don’t think this is just one maudlin set piece for your tears… there’s a lot of every day beauty in the film as the two teens explore their home town for the mundane small things that make life bright. Like the highest point in Indiana, a small roller coaster built in a farmer’s back yard, and similar insignificant yet meaningful places.
So, yeah, i can recommend this one, especially if you like a good romantic, tearful movie with honest emotions. Or particularly infectious smiles from two young actors. Or if you just need something to fill another day on lockdown.
Score: 84