100 Movie Challenge 2017 - # 43: Me Before You

Director: Thea Sharrock
Genre: Drama/ Romance
Runtime: 110 minutes
Year: 2016
Starring: Emilia Clarke, Sam Claflin, Matthew Lewis, Stephen Peacocke, Charles Dance, Jenna Coleman, Brendan Coyle

Description: A girl (Emilia Clarke) in a small town forms an unlikely bond with a recently-paralyzed man (Sam Claflin) she's taking care of.

Review: In “Me Before You”, Emilia Clarke plays Louisa Clark, Lou for short. She is a 26 year old with a love for a colorful wardrobe and no ambitions. She still lives with her parents and gets silly job to support them. When she gets fired from the café she works at, she needs to find a new job. Lou gets a job as caregiver of the paralyzed Will Traynor, a young man that is the complete opposite of Lou. Before the injury, he was a successful banker and lived life to the fullest. When he gets hit by a motorcycle and ends up in wheelchair for life, the ambitious man changes into a bitter and unhappy man. Lou is supposed to makes his life a bit more bearable. At first, they don’t really get along, but the two eventually form an unbreakable bond.
“Me Before You” deals with some really heavy themes, but the screenplay keeps it light. The focus is on the connection between Lou and Will. Emilia Clarke and Sam Claflin have perfect chemistry.
Although this movie doesn’t get the best reviews, I’m for once not going to be influenced by that. I loved “Me Before You”, I loved Clarke and Claflin. And one tip: keep the tissues near.

Rating: 5/ 5

Top 5 Thursday: Harry Potter Characters

I did this before, I ranked my favorite Harry Potter characters. But I’m a little older now and I reread and rewatched all the books and movies. My opinion has changed and I have adjusted my top 5. Here are my favorite characters from the Harry Potter series.

5. Minerva McGonagall

As the head of Gryffindor house and Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts, Professor McGonagall can be strict and disciplinary. But she can also be kind, the one who sometimes lets you get away with a bit of mischief. And that’s why Minerva McGonagall is so endearing and loving.

 

 

4. Neville Longbottom

Neville Longbottom is the quintessential dimwit-turned-hero. When we first meet him at Hogwarts, Neville is shy, introvert and simply not that good at magic. He is loveable. While he begins to show loyalty and signs of bravery early on, it isn’t until Neville’s fifth year and his participation in Dumbledore’s Army, that we see him truly come into his own.

 

 

3. Remus Lupin

Hogwarts has had many teachers for the Defense Against the Dark Arts, but Remus Lupin was very different from Quirrel and Lockhart. Lupin is a kind and caring presence in Harry’s life. While Dumbledore was already looking out for Harry, Remus Lupin was a much more available source of comfort. The fact that Lupin is also a werewolf gives his character an extra dimension, when we see this thoughtful, warm man works to control the monster he turns into.

 

 

2. Hermione Granger

Hermione Granger is Harry and Ron’s best girl-pal. She is so much more than just a token throw-in for female readers/ viewers to identify with. Hermione is very logical, upright and good. And while she is first painted as a brainy do-gooder who always plays by the rules, it’s fun to watch Hermione develop into so much over the course of the series. She remains the voice of reason, but she’ll break the law without hesitation if it’s for the greater good.

 

 

1. Sirius Black

Sirius Black had been sentenced to the prison of Azkaban for murdering twelve Muggles, but Black is in fact an innocent man. Sirius was a close friend to James and Lily Potter, so much they named him as Harry’s godfather. While he maintains a sort of edgy, rebellious appeal, it’s the father/ son relationship that begins to develop between Sirius and Harry that endears the character to me.

 

 

They Almost Made the Top 5: Ron Weasly, Dobby the House Elf, Rubeus Hagrid, Mad Eye Moody, Albus Dumbledore, Severus Snape, Luna Lovegood, Ginny Weasly, Fred & George Weasly