Me Before You

Me Before You, 2016

Directed by Thea Sherrock, 116 minutes

Emilia Clarke, Sam Claflin, Janet McTeer, Matthew Lewis, Brendan Coyle, Jenna Coleman, Charles Dance

Review by Katherine Scheetz

              This is going to be a little different than my usual review. I have been ruminating how best to address the controversial Me Before You film that opened two weeks ago in the U.S. Should I approach it from an analytically technical standpoint and simply ignore the elephant in the room? No. That does oceans of injustice to the deeper message in this film and the lives that are affected by it. So, here we go.

             

Mother-of-Dragons Emilia Clarke – and her exceptionally strong eyebrow game – portray Louisa Clarke, our perky, quirky, manic pixie dream girl protagonist, who finds a job as companion/caregiver to the fabulously wealthy, clinically depressed and relatively new quadriplegic Will Trainor (Claflin).   

The movie sets up what promises to be a heartwarming rom-com. Louisa isn’t present for any of the “messy bits” so neither are we. Gradually, Lou breaks through Will’s icy exterior. They take wildly expensive trips together, a fabulous red dress gets its feature moment at an oboe concert and Will seems to have found new purpose in widening Louisa’s horizons. But for one catch: it is, and always has been, Will’s decision to be euthanized in Switzerland through an organization called Dignitas. On that, let’s just say this: there’s a reason everyone is telling you to bring a box of tissues.

Because the audience is cut off from those “messy bits,” we don’t actually get a chance to see the moments when Will struggles with feeling like a burden. We don’t see getting out of bed, going to the bathroom, getting dressed – the struggles that ultimately lead to his decision in Switzerland. So we are left with assuming he’s committing suicide because his life has lost its value in becoming a quadriplegic.

Which simply isn’t true. Every life has value. A disability is not a pathology that needs to be “cured” in order to have meaning and find happiness. In fact, quite the opposite, those with disabilities bring a multitude of compassionate and convicted colors to the world as only they can. Not unlike Louisa’s own technicolor wardrobe (what a joy that must have been for the costuming department).

The avoidance of anything seemingly un-pretty makes it obvious that writer Jojo Moyes didn’t actually spend time getting to know the life of a quadriplegic beyond the physical complications.

Unsurprisingly, activist Michele Kaplan (Rebel Wheels NYC) stresses that becoming wheelchair bound later in life can have tremendous effects on mental health. In a situation like Will’s, a therapist or support group to work through the emotional well-being of the individual would be just as critical – if not more – than a physical therapist, which Will does have. It’s not as if money was an object in the film, as it so often is in reality.

Without giving away the specifics I’ll end with this: the final scene ultimately paints the thoroughly unromantic picture that Will’s life was worth more to Louisa dead. And that is an atrocious message to be sending out into the universe.

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