Five Feet Apart

Starring: Haley Lu Richardson, Cole Sprouse, Moises Arias, Kimberly Hebert Gregory, Parminder Nagra, Claire Forlani, Emily Baldoni, Gary Weeks
Directed by: Justin Baldoni
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Drama, Romance
2019

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Two teenagers (Haley Lu Richardson, Cole Sprouse) with cystic fibrosis fall in love, but their disease requires them to stay six feet apart or risk infection and death.

Review:

Tim: I admit going into this film, it felt like we'd seen this story before. There were some shades of The Fault in Our Stars. The whole idea of teen romance when one or both of them is sick/dying feels a little manipulative. You just know young viewers are going to eat it up. I'm saying this well aware of sounding a little cynical, because I still can't let go of the death in My Girl. Still, I dutifully sat down to watch Five Feet Apart. I was fairly surprised to find a well-made, memorable movie that proved better than The Fault in Our Stars. I wasn't expecting any of this, but I enjoyed this film.

One of the surprising things about this film was how much cystic fibrosis colors every interaction of the characters, every decision they made. I can't say the film was quite as informative about the disease as I would have liked, but it does put forth significant effort to explain the disease and what it means for those living with it. Nearly all the movie takes place in the hospital and this gives you an idea of what it's like for young people with this disease- isolated from the world, forced to build their own microcosm of a world. You get to understand what it might be like to be physically removed from friends or loves. It's a horrendous disease and I can't imagine what it's like to actually live with it. I appreciated how this film didn't treat it as a plot device, but an aspect of these characters that they cannot escape. It felt like it was done the right way. Sickness and disease shouldn't be a convenient way to create drama or tension. This movie felt like it really sought to examine the effect this disease has on people, specifically, young people in love. That approach absolutely worked here.

The other big reason this movie surpassed my expectations was the stunning performance of Haley Lu Richardson. I'm familiar with her in a bunch of supporting roles she's done and I've been impressed with her. All of that previous work didn't prepare me for how incredible she was in this film. She gives a physical, unforgettable performance full of emotion, strength, and vulnerability. I loved how she made a connection with the audience that allowed you to understand her character, to see beyond the surface. She conveys so much emotion and information through her facial expressions. I was impressed with her before this film, but this truly felt a showcase of her talent (which is considerable). To be fair, some of the moments where she is required to embrace the more controlling aspects of her personality felt a bit forced, but overall, Richardson makes this movie worthwhile through her talent.

I felt a bit differently about Cole Sprouse. I love him from social media (the guy is hilarious on Twitter), but I wasn't completely sold on his performance. A lot of this has to do with the writing- the early scenes are hard to watch. He's not misunderstood, he's an unlikable jerk. It was so predictable that Richardson's character was going to fall for him, but they didn't do a great job in the early scenes of striking the right balance with his character. To be fair, some of this is his acting, too. He needed to be rough around the edges but likeable. That doesn't quite happen early in the movie. As the film goes on, we warm up to his character and his performance. It felt like the latter scenes were more in alignment with his strengths as an actor. He's definitely better as the movie goes on.

Moises Arias gives a very strong supporting performance. I've seen him in a number of supporting roles over the years. He's certainly a unique actor and bring something unexpected to the film. I thought his performance was vulnerable and interesting and he makes a strong impact on the overall film. It was nice seeing Claire Forlani here, but I wish she had more to do. The rest of the supporting cast was fine.

Although Five Feet Apart does suffer from many of the expected issues of a teen-focused romantic drama, it does enough right to mostly make up for that. It feels like the medical aspect of the film was more in-depth and believable than most films like this. Even though it's a little absurd, I liked the idea of "five feet apart". It's heartwarming to see humanity attempting to prevail in the face of adversity, especially when it's an illness. The little victories can feel like big ones, and this movie does a good job of demonstrating that.

While flawed, Five Feet Apart does give us some relatable characters and it tells an emotional, entertaining story. The film was better than I expected and a movie I really did enjoy watching. It's a reminder that Richardson is becoming a real talent and I look forward to seeing what she does next.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 7



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: The Fault in Our Stars, My Girl, The Cure