“The target audiences are teenage girls”, “A date movie”, “The young love audience will swoon”, “Was once called a woman’s movie or a tear jerker”---call “Everything, Everything” whatever you want but I really like young love stories, especially when there is an illness involved!

Maddy Whittier, played by Amandla Stenberg, has SCID, severe combined immunodeficiency, which means she cannot go out of her germ free house, has an all day nurse Carla, played by Ana de la Requera and her mother, played by Anika Noni Rose, is a doctor who takes over from Carla when she gets home.

Not that you would be surprised but a new family moves in next door and Olly, played by Nick Robinson, just as Maddy is about to become 18, his age too. From their talking through windows, texting, his being told about her disease and coming to understanding it to their trusting each other and Maddy’s imagination the time comes for her to take her first step out into the world where she isn’t suppose to go.

Along the way we learn that Olly has an abusive father, Maddy lost her father and brother in a car accident many years before and the fact that Maddy is Black and Olly is White is just a given and has nothing to do with two youngsters falling n love for the first time.

About 50 minutes into the movie Maddy takes her first step out of the house and if you want to see what happens in the remaining 46 minutes go see the movie.

Director Stella Meghie, along with screenwriter J. Mills Goodloe, embrace the teenage romance hitting all the right marks, even when there are emotional moments that could be used to manipulate the audience. They concentrate on the romance aspect ignoring the racial, doesn’t matter, difference, briefly mention the Olly’s abusive father and even make the ‘see it coming’ last 20 minutes acceptable.

Nick Robinson is always dressed in black while Amandla Stenberg basically wears white after falling in love she is in an array of colors and they always complement each other in feelings though have opposite ideas of what love is, or should be, but they are a believable couple throughout the movie.

I’ve always liked Anika Noni Rose and have enjoyed her journey from being a singer on Broadway to becoming an actress in films and on television. Ana de la Requera is a Mexican actress who is new to me and made enough of an impression that I will look forward to seeing her in more films.

If you are a ‘softie’ like me and believe in love, especially first young love, go see “Everything, Everything”. 

Movie trailer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42KNwQ6u42U