Five Feet Apart, as sappy drama-romance movies go, isn’t terrible thanks in large part to both Haley Lu Richardson and Cole Sprouse, both having some seemingly genuine on-screen chemistry.
Five Feet Apart
(2018)
Genre(s): Drama, Romance
Lionsgate | PG13 – 116 min. – $39.99 | June 11, 2019
Date Published: 06/05/2019 | Author: The Movieman
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Lionsgate provided me with a free copy of the Blu-ray I reviewed in this Blog Post.
The opinions I share are my own.
THE MOVIE — 3.0/5 |
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Note: This review does contain spoilers, but if you’ve seen past romantic-dramas, you already know the blueprint. Plot Synopsis: Seventeen-year-old Stella (HALEY LU RICHARDSON) spends most of her time in the hospital as a cystic fibrosis patient. Her life is full of routines, boundaries and self-control — all of which get put to the test when she meets Will (COLE SPROUSE), an impossibly charming teen who has the same illness. There’s an instant flirtation, though restrictions dictate that they must maintain a safe distance between them. As their connection intensifies, so does the temptation to throw the rules out the window and embrace that attraction.
Review: It seems every year there are one or two tear-jerker romance-dramas and the one so far for 2019 is Five Feet Apart a movie that surprisingly enough wasn’t based on a novel, though follows the formula which, at its basics, is one or two sick characters meet, fall in love and one dies in the end. The only variable is what disease are they inflicted with. Going in, I should say I generally skip these types of movies but decided to sit down to watch Five Feet Apart, mostly because I am a fan of Haley Lu Richardson and my interests to pique when I see she’s in the lead role (vs. playing the best friend as she had in Edge of Seventeen and Split). As such, the acting from both Richardson and Cole Sprouse, another on-the-rise young actor, playing the lead on Riverdale, were both above par and really make the movie tolerable, even when the formula doesn’t break new ground. Five Feet Apart, written by Mikki Daughtry and Tobias Iaconis (the writing duo behind The Curse of La Llorona) and directed by Justin Baldoni marking his feature film directorial debut and although his career has mostly consisted on the acting realm, primarily on Jane the Virgin, does an adequate job.
Even though I’d hardly call this great and it doesn’t veer far from others in the tear-jerker teen drama-romance like The Fault in Our Stars or *insert Nicholas Sparks adaptation*, the performances from the two young leads does make it tolerable, even watchable, though this at times it’s the height of sap. |
SPECIAL FEATURES – 3.75/5 |
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This release comes with a glossy slip cover and inside a redemption code for the Digital HD copy. Audio Commentary – Director Justin Baldoni guides the audience through the process of making the movie, praising the cast and other little bits of information. Nothing I’d consider all that engaging, but still nice to get a breakdown of even the rom-drama. Crossing it Off: Making Five Feet Apart (14:15) is a behind-the-scenes featurette with interviews by members of the cast and crew. On Set of Five Feet Apart (6:29) is a fly-on-the-wall footage from the set. Attention to Detail (5:55) outlines how the filmmakers tried to keep the disease, cystic fibrosis, as realistic as possible. An Artist’s Eye (6:01) – This featurette is on the artwork drawn by the Will character and what it means for him. Theatrical Fan Event (18:52) is an exclusive featurette that, I believe, played before or after some screenings. I think. Deleted Scenes (8:05) and Alternate Ending (1:59) – These scenes either didn’t make the cut or deleted completely. None of these are of particular import, though the alternate ending gives a more hopefully finale, but less impactful… |
VIDEO – 4.0/5 |
| Lionsgate releases Five Feet Apart onto Blu-ray, presented in its original 2.39 widescreen aspect ratio and a 1080p high-definition transfer (MPEG-4 AVC codec). The movie is fairly sharp and nicely defined throughout, colors, even with the more somber tone at times, is bright especially since most of the movie is contained inside a hospital, though we do get a sense of the dark levels which are well balanced. |
AUDIO – 3.75/5 |
| The included DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track is adequate but hardly anything special. The dialogue from the center channel comes through with fine clarity and there is a modest amount of depth on the front and rear speakers, but also very low key, along with the choice sober teen pop music. |
OVERALL – 3.0/5 |
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Five Feet Apart, as sappy drama-romance movies go, isn’t terrible thanks in large part to both Haley Lu Richardson (who has become a favorite of mine and nice to see her in a leading role) and Cole Sprouse, both having some seemingly genuine on-screen chemistry. But the movie is formulaic and predictable, but I suppose has a kind message. |
Check out some more 1080p screen caps by going to page 2. Please note, these do contain spoilers.