The Fault In Our Stars Review

Newspaper Culture Editor Julia Mitchell reviews The Fault in Our Stars. Prepare to exercise the tear ducts.

It’s time to put down your tear-stained novels and bust open a new box of tissues, folks. After months of swelling anticipation and millions of online trailer views, The Fault in Our Stars has finally hit British cinemas. And oh my, it’s definitely worth the hype.

Adapted from John Green’s bestselling novel with the same name, The Fault in Our Stars (or TFIOS) has topped the charts since its publication in 2012.

You’d be forgiven for mistaking this title as just another cancer story. It’s not. The Fault in Our Stars features two adolescents who have fallen in love for the first time, each having suffered from a touch of cancer. Hazel requires a portable oxygen tank in order to breathe, while Augustus has been left with only one and a half of his legs. If you haven’t yet read the book (which I strongly recommend doing) you can probably tell that this tale has some serious feels in store. It’s not a ‘cancer story’, it’s a love story.

But now, I want to talk about the movie itself.

In the terms of emotion, this film has captured the entire spectrum. Described by many as a tear jerker (in fact I was warned by the cinema employee while purchasing my ticket), TFIOS has harnessed the themes of grief and suffering just as well as it captures the euphoria of first love.

Moments such as ‘The Night of the Broken Trophies’ and ‘Isaac’s egg throwing revenge’ have been captured perfectly, producing laugh out loud moments among the audience. ‘Support group’ is similarly amusing, where Patrick’s quirky enthusiasm falls flat in the teenagers’ sarcastic eyes.

And then there’s Amsterdam, which was filmed beautifully.

These characters are teenagers, and for once the actors actually looked their age, and not ten years older. Ansel Elgort’s portrayal of Augustus was spot on, his cocky personality translated onto the screen in a way that is both likeable and endearing. Acting as Hazel, Shailene Woodley was also successful, a certain chemistry blossoming between the two characters.

The portrayal of Peter Van Houten was an absolute highlight. Rude and wonderfully obnoxious, actor Willem Dafoe expertly depicted the character as the monster he was written to be.

One character that I wasn’t so happy with was Van Houten’s red haired assistant, Lidewij Vliegenthart. I longed for a greater reaction to her employer’s despicable words, and this actor just wasn’t fiery enough for my liking.

I was also disappointed by the Oranjee restaurant scene. Yes, it was gorgeous and beautifully lit, but I’d have preferred the river and storms of blossom from the book any day.

Despite these little niggles, The Fault in Our Stars has proved to be worth every minute of my time, and every month of waiting. Both emotional and thought provoking, this film does justice to a book that has seized the hearts of readers all over the world.

This is a ticket purchase that you won’t regret, but your tear ducts might. Girls, hold off on the makeup.