Redbox Rental Rants: Me Before You | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Entertainment

Redbox Rental Rants: Me Before You

Me Before You isn't a terrible movie. It's just a movie you've seen a thousand times before.

25
Redbox Rental Rants: Me Before You
Sam Claflin Fans

Because I’m a poor college student with no money and no means of transportation, I rarely make it out to the movie theater. Redbox rentals it is. I may not be up-to-date on what’s playing in theaters, but wait a few months and I’ll let you know if the movie’s worth the dollar fifty rental fee.

****Obligatory Spoiler Alert****

ME BEFORE YOU, abridged:

JOJO MOYES (screenwriter) and THEA SHARROCK (director): Okay, we need to check off as many points as we can on our checklist of "Romance Tropes That Make People Cry." Here we go...

LOUISA: Hello. I am the protagonist of this movie. I am so quirky and adorable you can't help but fall in love with me! I have zero ambitions in life. This will allow me to grow as a character.

WILL: I'm a huge jerk and this will allow me to grow as a character.

JOJO MOYES and THEA SHARROCK: Cool. Check off "obvious character arcs." Now to shove in a forced meeting.

LOUISA: Despite having zero (emphasis on zero) experience in caring for quadriplegics, I've been hired as Will's caretaker!**

WILL: And I hate her!

JOJO MOYES/THEA SHARROCK: "Belligerent sexual tension" is a go.

WILL: After spending a few months with you, Louisa, I've decided that I don't find you overwhelmingly annoying anymore.

LOUISA: Great. And now I'm kind of falling in love with you. Except I have a boyfriend. A really crappy one. He doesn't really care about me or my interests, but for some reason I've stayed with him for seven years.

JOJO MOYES/THEA SHARROCK: "Bad boyfriend to emphasize amazing qualities of main male hero" check!

PATRICK (Louisa's boyfriend): Hey, Louisa, I am uncomfortable with your relationship with Will, so we're breaking up. Although my motivations for breaking up with you could have been understandable, I've just been such a jerk the entire movie that nobody's sad to see me go.

LOUISA: (to Will) Sweet. Now we can hook up.

WILL: (after a few scenes of cutesy romance with Louisa) Actually, we can't be a thing. Even though you've showed me life could be really awesome, I've decided to go through with assisted suicide because life in a wheelchair is just not worth it. (He dies)

LOUISA: This is really sad. But my relationship with Will really changed me as a person, so that's good, I guess.

JOJO MOYES/THEA SHARROCK: Sweet! We checked off the big one: "Death of one half of the romantic pair to ensure a tearjerker."

THE END

(**-Yes, I know there's an explanation given as to why they hired Louisa despite her lack of experience. It does not make this detail any less stupid.)

Oh, boy. I don't really know how to describe how I felt about Me Before You. The above snarky summary was meant to highlight the issues I had with it. And even though I had quite a few issues with the movie, it's not a poorly made movie. I loved the cast; it's the primary reason I was so keen on checking this movie out in the first place. It never gets melodramatic or cheesy. But overall, the movie's plot is contrived. It is so desperate to be a tearjerker that, instead of dropping or changing certain plot points and characters, it just recycles cliches from other romance movies to guarantee a weeping audience. Although the subject of quadriplegia is certainly new and different, the characters and storyline that are built upon this subject are old. We have the cutesy main character and her kooky family. We have the stoic love interest who will warm up to her. We have the stoic love interest's rich family, who is prim and proper and have next to no personality. We have an ending in which one of the main characters dies because how else are you going to get people to cry?

Me Before You is not a dreadful movie. I didn't want to set the DVD on fire when the movie was over. It didn't feel like a waste of two hours. However, the movie could have been so much more interesting if it hadn't played straight with so many romantic movie cliches. That said, Me Before You is a decent, if not wholly original, movie for a girls' night in.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
12 Things To Do On A Snow Day

Everyone loves a snow day! Whether you decide to call out sick from work or your classes get canceled, it is a great way to spend time with family and friends.

1. Build a snowman

People brave enough to face the weather can go outside to build an adorable man made of snow. Relive those childhood glory days, but remember to bundle up!

Keep Reading...Show less
April Ludgate
NBC Universal

Everyone who is in college right now, or has ever been, knows the struggle of pulling in the strings at the last second. It seems impossible, and you have to do a LOT of things in order to assure your future for the next semester.

April Ludgate, historically, is a very annoyed person, and she doesn't hide it. Of all the times that I binged and re-binged "Parks and Rec," her attitude relates more and more to me.

Keep Reading...Show less
Health and Wellness

To The Cheerful Person On Their Rainy Days, You Are Valid

The world is not always sunshine and rainbows, and you do not have to be, either.

699
pug covered with blanket on bedspread
Photo by Matthew Henry on Unsplash

Ask friends of mine to name a quality about me, and one a lot them will point out the fact that I am almost always smiling. I like to laugh and smile -- not to quote Buddy the Elf in April, but smiling is my favorite! It is probably my favorite go-to expression. However, what a lot of people do not see is that I have my down days. I have days when smiling and laughing is a real struggle, or when I have so much on my plate that going out of my way to behappy takes more effort than I have stored in me. Be it a symptom of college and growing up or a facet of life, I cannot always be content.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

11 Struggles of Packing for College

It would be so much easier to just pay someone to do it for you

693
a room with boxes and a window

1. Figuring out when to start

Timing is key, you don’t want to start too early or too late.

Keep Reading...Show less
Entertainment

15 Times 'Parks and Recreation' Has Summed Up Your Life

Relatable moments from one of the best shows I have ever watched.

460
parks and rec
Liz Keysmash

Amidst my hectic college career, I always find time for one thing, even on the busiest weeks: Parks and Recreation. This show has made me laugh and has made me cry, but most of all I have related to this show more than I would like to admit.

Here are some "Parks and Rec" moments that relate to life struggles that just about everyone faces.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments