Is it a buddy movie? Is it a melodramatic tear jerker? No, it's something in between that doesn't quite fit on either end.
This is a problem of the source material that is mostly a horror story of human physical and mental decay that critics wouldn't really watch but give raving reviews if someone actually cared to release that film, while nobody would pay to see it. The other problem with the source material is that the title character is so scarcely sketched. In trying to fill out this character, the screenwriters neglected to actually make us really believe these two were best friends so that Dane couldn't perceive doing anything but offer his full devotion and instead seem to try it make some connection to Dane's own preexisting depression. Misery loves company I guess? The issue is we don't get this in the source material except for a sense that perhaps Dane had an emotional crash after the death. So it feels more like an homage to other Segal characters than the actual material from which the movie was drawn.
I get it. This story isn't 50/50. No, it's something like should make the brutal Amour feel like a stroll in the park. Unfortunately by trying to find a middle ground we get something that doesn't really satisfy on either front.
Now if you want a rather easy to watch tear jerker with likable characters this is your jam.
This is a problem of the source material that is mostly a horror story of human physical and mental decay that critics wouldn't really watch but give raving reviews if someone actually cared to release that film, while nobody would pay to see it. The other problem with the source material is that the title character is so scarcely sketched. In trying to fill out this character, the screenwriters neglected to actually make us really believe these two were best friends so that Dane couldn't perceive doing anything but offer his full devotion and instead seem to try it make some connection to Dane's own preexisting depression. Misery loves company I guess? The issue is we don't get this in the source material except for a sense that perhaps Dane had an emotional crash after the death. So it feels more like an homage to other Segal characters than the actual material from which the movie was drawn.
I get it. This story isn't 50/50. No, it's something like should make the brutal Amour feel like a stroll in the park. Unfortunately by trying to find a middle ground we get something that doesn't really satisfy on either front.
Now if you want a rather easy to watch tear jerker with likable characters this is your jam.