By Elizabeth Scalzo
Staff Writer
“Five Feet Apart” came out Friday March 15, and has since has left audiences weeping at the beautiful, but tragic love story.
The movie stars Haley Lu Richardson and Cole Sprouse playing the roles of the main characters Stella and Will. Stella and Will are both diagnosed with cystic fibrosis, which means they both must stay six feet apart at all times to save themselves from catching one another’s bacteria, which could kill them (cross infection).
Stella has taken control of her treatments and is a bit OCD when it comes to her med cart, which makes it even harder when she learns Will has been ignoring his treatment. Will has a care-free attitude, as he states many times that he is, “breathing borrowed air” and that they will both die anyways. Stella could not handle that because she believes in striving to live even though she is diagnosed with a chronic illness.
Stella also has a YouTube channel which she regularly posts on in the movie and she finally decides that she wants be with Will and that she is tired of the six feet apart rule. She explains that an average pool stick is five feet in length and since cystic fibrosis has taken so much from her, she decided she was taking back that one foot from cystic fibrosis.
As the movie goes on, Stella and Will go on a series of adventures throughout the hospital together, while holding the pool stick to keep them apart. The biggest adventure entails Stella throwing a birthday party for Will with the help of his friends and her best friend Poe, who is portrayed by Moises Arias. Poe is a fellow CF patient that Stella had met when they were both young children.
The movie also includes a character who gives comic relief, Kimberly Herbert Gregory, as nurse Barb. She helps the audience to have some moments of laughter throughout the twists and turns of tragedy and tears that the movie is filled with.
Movies that play on tragedy of chronic illness and love stories are nothing new and have become quite popular among teen and young adult audiences. One of the most popular movies being the adaptation of John Green’s book, “The Fault in our Stars” which tells the love story of two teens with cancer.
Both “Five Feet Apart” and “The Fault in our Stars” were loved by audiences because of the authenticity of the characters and this gives them the ability to sympathize pain with the characters.
Even though “Five Feet Apart” was not the top grossing movie the weekend of its release, it still left audiences amazed and weeping.
Via IMDB
