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film review

Olivia Cooke and Thomas Mann play unlikely friends Rachel and Greg. Greg describes his relationship with Rachel as ‘doomed,’ but he makes her laugh and provides a distraction from reality.

Something for you, me and the film geek, Me and Earl and the Dying Girl is a quirky, self-aware dramedy with a vibe that is at turns wiseacre and wise, with tear-jerking moments that are never maudlin and comic moments that are authentic.

The main character – that would be Greg, the "me" of the title – is a self-centred high school senior who takes pride in his superficiality. He's also the candid narrator, and one might chalk his self-loathing up to perceptiveness. He's awkwardly uncool and hard to root for, but not hard to watch. His coming of age is presented deftly, and is played with mutilayered aplomb by Thomas Mann, whom I assume we'll be seeing around more.

The girl dying of leukemia clearly sees something in her awkward classmate and neighbour, and because the character (played with understatement by the young actress Olivia Cooke) earned my trust from the get-go, I was obligated to put in the 105 minutes to come around to her side.

Greg plays his life as if it's a game. He has no close friends – he makes cheeky DIY films with Earl (RJ Cyler), whom he describes as a "co-worker" – but displays deep guile in the way he cultivates alliances with the various cliques and characters at his high school. He makes a point of earning "citizenship with every nation," while firmly committing to none of the groups.

When he's urged by his mother – "the LeBron James of nagging" – to spend time with Rachel, recently diagnosed with cancer, he trudges to her house reluctantly. There he is met by Rachel's single mother, played by former SNL cast member Molly Shannon, an excellent character actor when given a chance, as she is here.

Greg describes his relationship with Rachel as "doomed," but he makes her laugh and provides a distraction. That he doesn't seem to feel sorry for her is exactly what she wants.

The film is adapted from the young-adult novel of the same name, a bestseller written by Jesse Andrews, who makes his screenwriting debut here. He hammered the thing out with second-time director Alfonso Gomez-Rejon, apparently a patient man.

Comparisons will be made with last year's The Fault in Our Stars, but, unlike that teenage-cancer story, there are no romantic feelings to be had here, from either side (even though the pair spend countless hours together in her bedroom). As she gets sicker, Greg is forced from his emotional fort. He begins making a film for her, to the exclusion of all of his school work.

Gomez-Rejon has crafted a soulful story about a teenager dying. He manages to include a hilarious Hugh Jackman voice cameo, with all sorts of cinematic winks, nods and homages for the popcorn nerds. Most importantly, he disdains kid gloves – they wouldn't be the right fit at all.

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