Review by John Delia
Ladies are the target audience for the film Miss You Already a tearjerker laced with comedy starring Drew Barrymore and Toni Collette. Just coming off Breast Cancer Awareness month in October, the film exemplifies the devastating effects of the disease and those that are brave enough to face it. The performances by the whole cast are stunning and realistic making the film compelling as it tests the bonds of friendship and the bedrock on which it is built. Bring some tissues.
Jess, a transplant from America to England meets Milly an outgoing child who takes the yank under her wing. Over the years they form a friendship that’s forged with love and sisterhood both achieving their first kiss by a boy, loss of their virginity and finally marriage. While Milly (Toni Collette) has accomplished the hurdle of bearing children that Jess has not. But, Jess has been working overtime on that rite of passage.
Nearing her 40th birthday, Milly has her annual checkup and a lump that the doctor finds comes back from the lab positive for cancer. Completely dismayed and starting to get depressed, she keeps it to herself trying to come to terms with the disturbing news with the hope that surgery will take it away. In the meantime Jess finds out she’s pregnant, but before she can tell Milly she gets a call from her lifelong friend that shatters a chance of spreading her the good news.
It’s a film about challenges, facing one’s fears, trusting your instincts and dealing with what life has handed you. Director Catherine Hardwicke (Thirteen, Twilight) moves the film along at a fast pace bringing the story up to the point of Milly finding she has cancer. Then he slows it down a bit as it all sinks in with her immediate family, her mother Miranda (Jacqueline Bisset), possibility of mastectomy and of course her best friend Jess. Hardwicke keeps her film upbeat adding comedy while dealing all the variables of the very unstable disease.
The acting here, especially the performance by Toni Collette as Milly is superb and Oscar worthy. Full of energy and vitality she hones her character that has the good life until she slams into a nightmare. Collette shows Milly turning on herself and damning the disease that has taken over her life. Bewildered, skeptical of her future and having to accept the hard facts, Milly has to make decisions no one could expect.
Doing a superb job as the friend and confident even though she has problems in her own life, Drew Barrymore lets her hair down in the part of Jess. She’s the stronger of the two with her head screwed on straight, so she knows how to deal with the tough love by letting Milly’s difficulties come first. When Milly causes a separation between the two, Jess waits out the trying period knowing that she’ll be there for her when the time comes.
Miss You Already has been rated PG-13 for thematic content, sexual material and some language. The comedy does help the downer focused film although tears of joy are also expressed. Â Maybe bring several tissues for this one.
FINAL ANALYSIS: A challenging film that speaks volumes about friendship (A-)
Additional Film Information:
Cast: Toni Collette, Drew Barrymore, Dominic Cooper, Paddy Considine, Jacqueline Bisset,
Directed by: Catherine Hardwicke
Genre: Drama, Comedy
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for thematic content, sexual material and some language
Running Time: 1 hr. 52 min.
Release Date: November 6, 2015
Distributed by: Lionsgate