Romantic dramas have had a bad rap over the past decade or so, if only because Nicholas Sparks adaptations seem to come out every other month. Most of the time, they’re so god awful that you’ll wonder why people even flock out to see them in the first place.
That’s why with a movie like “Me Before You,” which features a paraplegic (Sam Claflin) falling head-over-heels for his paid “friend” (Emilia Clarke), you’ll automatically assume that it’s sappy, melodramatic trash.
However, it’s far from that; “Me Before You” features a heart and soul wherein two characters who didn’t think they needed each other at all, start to learn more about the other and life simultaneously. It can be a bit much, but there’s real emotion felt between these two stars that’s hard not to get behind and feel for, even when the final act comes in with a hard-as-a-rock emotional wallop you won’t be expecting.
It’s not perfect, but it’s definitely better than any of the Nicholas Sparks adaptations.
3 out of 5 stars
