The Fault in Our Stars

Today, I watched the film The Fault in Our Stars.  I've never read the book and don't plan to, and before going into the film, I was skeptical that I would enjoy a movie, I personally saw as being directed towards teenage girls.  However, I was pleasantly surprised, and as a result, I've decided to write this blog post in response to this movie.

The movie seems to point towards this question of life and romance.   With life and romance, you also have death: death of our physical existence and death of love.  Just like how our bodies fail us sometimes, so do our relationships.  Intertwining these two things, life and romance, is the concept of time and ultimately, oblivion.  How long will we live?  How long will this relationship last?  It's also interesting how the movie returns intermittently to this concept of oblivion, portraying it as a possible outcome to the end of our physical existence, and subsequently, our love relationships.

There are three definitions of oblivion that I find relevant:
1. the state of being unaware or unconscious of what is happening
2. the state of being forgotten, especially by the public
3. extinction

The second definition is the predominant definition the movie refers back to. The male protagonist, Gus, mentions that his greatest fear is being forgotten, to live his life without leaving behind a legacy.  Like many others, his ideal self is a hero, a survivor of cancer who lives on bringing hope to the world.  The female protagonist, Hazel, views oblivion as unavoidable.  Just like how our physical existence for only a short moment, our legacies, no matter how great, will all perish and be forgotten over time.  And, with this fear, comes an underlying fear that we will be forgotten by those whom we love.

However, it's the other two definitions that I find interesting.  The third could be interchanged with the second because we could ask the question: "What is extinction?"  You may define it scientifically, or maybe as "dying out" or "disappearance."  But, when it comes to humans, what does the term "extinction" refer to?  I think, for a person to become truly extinct, not only must he or she physically cease to exist, but he or she must also cease to exist in the memories of those who remain, or the second definition.

What about the first definition?  How can we relate this to the film, or even more broadly to life and romance?  It's not a coincidence that the the author chooses to use cancer as an important motif.  Actually, motif might be an understatement as cancer is what ironically brings and holds everything together.  It is out Hazel meets Gus, and how these two come to terms with the questions and obstacles they face throughout the movie.  In one way, you can view cancer as the male antagonist, but in others, it's the glue that holds the story together.  But, how does cancer work? How did it afflict both protagonists?  The answer is simple; cancer latched on to them long before they were aware or conscious of its presence.  As a result, by the time it went diagnosed, it had already done significant damage to their bodies.  In fact, cancer is often referred to as a silent killer.  This is where the first definition comes in.  When our bodies are afflicted with an illness like cancer, we find ourselves becoming strangers to our own body, unaware of what's taking place within us and how much more our bodies can take or how much longer we can last.

So, how does the movie address this issue of oblivion?  How do the protagonists address this fear?

It's ironic, but it's the hopeful Gus that falls apart in the end, and the pessimistic Hazel that provides the answer to the question (whether the answer is sufficient, that's up to you to decide).  While Gus copes with the realization that his fear might indeed become a reality, Hazel reminds him that he was never going to achieve his dream, but at the same time, she questions that whether or not he is missing something greater.  Yes, he won't leave behind this great legacy that he had hoped, but at the same time, no, he will not be forgotten.  He won't become completely extinct because he will be remembered by those who loved him.

I wondered if anyone picked up on the significance of Anne Frank in this movie because her story is a perfect example.  You can call it an allegory, an analogy or even foreshadowing, but her death, although seemingly insignificant at the time ended up becoming one of the defining moments of the Holocaust.  No matter how great the pain and injustice, she found a way to cope with it, and ultimately, her story was not forgotten.  I'm not saying the cancer can be compared to the Holocaust, but one cannot forget that this idea of life being unjust was brought up in an intimate conversation between Gus and Hazel that takes place in Amsterdam, and in the end, just like how Anne Frank's story was not forgotten, so was this love story between Hazel and Gus, because we as an audience will remember it (even though it is fictional).

This brings us to the final point I want to make.  That is the title of the story: The Fault in Our Stars.  Stars is another interesting motif in the story.  From the title scene to the ending scene, the movie starts and ends with Hazel looking at the stars (actually the story is told almost like a flashback, through the eyes of Hazel).  But, what does the title mean?  It seems as though stars is referring to fate, or at least the most obvious conclusion for me is that.  However, I hate to think that the answer is that simple.  After all, stars also come up again during their romantic dinner at a fancy restaurant, as they have their first sips of champagne, where the waiter says, "Do you know what Dom Perignon said after inventing champagne?... He called out to his fellow monks, 'Come quickly: I am tasting the stars'." And later, when Gus mentions how they will need more champagne, the waiter responds, "We have bottled all the stars this evening, my young friends."  At this moment, everything seems to be going well.  I would say that this is probably the high point in their relationship, and it is almost as if, all the stars are in their reach.  Cancer, death, and oblivion all were forgotten in this single moment where the only thing that matters is each other's presence.

However, in a twisted turn of events, everything goes south.  It starts with their horrible meeting with Peter Van Houten, who both Gus and Hazel had idolized, but who also becomes the drunk, cynical, sarcastic and arguable heartless author who seems to care little about the feelings of others.  It was this author that also stated something that goes along the lines of, "Pain...it demands to be felt." And, I believe, shortly following this scene, we see the meaning behind this statement.  After all, no matter how joyous their time in Amsterdam was, Hazel and Gus have to face the reality that both of them are suffering from cancer, and that Gus may only have a short time left before he has to face his fear of oblivion.  And in those moments, we see just how excruciating pain can be, from Gus's breakdown to Hazel's grief.  But, it's interesting how Hazel returns back to the simple message found hanging on the wall at Gus's home, "Without pain, we wouldn't know joy."  The movie downplays these words as typical comforting words, but I wonder, with Hazel, referring back to them during her eulogy for Gus if these words actually meant more to both Gus and her.  Although she felt the greatest pain of her life when she lost Gus, it is also true that through loving him, she gained an unforgettable joy and cherished memories.

I think Hazel's father summarizes everything well when he says, "It was sure a privilege to love him, huh?" How often to we view love as a privilege, especially in the face of great tragedy.  But, I believe that the story leads to this exact conclusion.  This isn't a sad story, or a classic Shakespeare tragedy, but rather, it's a memoir.  It's a love story that emphasizes the moment.  While there may have been fault in their stars, for the moment they were together, all the stars were within their reach.

I know that my thoughts are disorganized, but I wanted to write down whatever I could while the film was still fresh in my mind.  I will considering edit this when I have more time to organize my thoughts together.  In the end, this movie really surprised me, and I would actually recommend this movie to people of all ages, not just to teenage girls.