Movie review of “Me Before You”: The film adaptation of Jojo Moyes’ “Me Before You” is sweet, but its pop soundtrack distracts. It’s cliché, sappy, and mostly predictable. Sometimes the success of a film all boils down to a solitary performance. British theater director Thea Sharrock, in her feature debut, makes every moment look like a commercial for some unattainable luxury brand, even as Will is struggling with complications from his injuries. Someone needs to remind her, “Love Actually”-style, that she is the full brains, beauty, humor package herself, and more “perfect” than any guy out there”. Solid in the role, he and Clarke do have some chemistry together, but nothing that’s bound to leave you wrecked one way or another by the end. Now unable to move his arms or legs, he’s seemingly lost the will to live. Lou is hired mainly to be his friend, though she has her work cut out for her since he’s mentally prepared for an assisted suicide and tends to be cruel to anyone in range of his caustic wit. Just as Will falls in love with Lou, so do we.
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So the plot really isn’t anything new.
However, when I joked if she’d brought along a pair of bumble-bee tights, a garment that her character adores, to impress her potential cast and crew Sam Claflin interjected with, “No, she brought her garlic breath”. Nearly immediately winning the audience over, she makes you want to just eat Lou up. Clarke though, does stand out, playing this quirky ray of sunshine in the role that is Lou. We can’t help but wonder whether Louisa, noble as she is, would be quite so starry-eyed about this man under less attractive circumstances.
Even Nick Jonas gets flustered around celebrities. “It’s alright. You’ve seen the good bits”. The scenery is additionally breathtaking and of course Jill Taylor’s wonderful costume design deserves serious Oscar consideration. “I can’t get on no internet [dating] site!” she said.
Blushing over Daenerys! Game of Thrones fanatic Nick Jonas couldn’t stay away when he heard that Emilia Clarke would be appearing on BBC Radio 1’s Breakfast Show on Thursday, June 2.
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‘Me Before You, ‘ with Emilia Clarke, Sam Claflin, Janet McTeer, Charles Dance, Matthew Lewis, Stephen Peacocke.
