I went to see Five Feet Apart Friday night. I have
never been so nervous and excited to see a movie at the same time. I put a lot
of pressure on the movie, because having light shed on cystic fibrosis is
something that I have been wanting for a long time. Sadly, most of the time
when it is mentioned in a TV show, it leaves me feeling disappointed. So the
fact that a big Hollywood movie is focused solely on the disease is huge!
So is the movie accurate? Does it really do justice to
cystic fibrosis and what it is like living with it? Should people go see it?
Will it raise awareness? Yes, yes, yes, and yes!
You could tell how much time and effort they put into
researching cystic fibrosis and what life with the disease is like. They showed
so many details from the G-tubes, ports, and oxygen all the way to the main
character, Stella, coughing up mucus. They showed all the medications and
treatments and even went into showing how complications can throw off all the
plans for treatment. Even though I am not in the hospital very often, and I don’t
have a port or a G-tube, I saw myself in the characters. I especially connected
to some of the things they said about living with a disease that is slowly
killing you. There is a moment when Will talks about how we are essentially
drowning… I so feel that! My biggest fear is drowning or suffocating, and I
know it’s because of CF. Poe also talked about how hard it is to be in a
relationship because of not wanting to put all of this on another person… the
bills, stress, and everything else.
There were also little things that I’m not sure the typical
movie goer would pick up on. For instance, when Poe calls Stella sister, I
imagined it being spelled cyster, because that is a term that many in the CF
community call females with cystic fibrosis. Then there are the interactions
with the parents because people don’t really understand what parents of kids
with terminal illnesses go through. I don’t know how my parents do what they do
for me. They are so strong and have always been my advocates in everything I
do.
For those people who did not think the movie would bring
awareness, you could not be more wrong. It was very informative. It went into a
lot of details without talking over people’s heads. I went with a person who
didn’t know a lot about CF, and the movie led to some great questions and
conversations. Also, before the movie, people were just staring at me and
giving me weird looks because of my mask. After the movie, I was still getting
looks, but then they would smile. It was like they had a new understanding of
why I was wearing the mask.
There were a ton of teenage girls in the theater when we
went, but my hope is that more adults will take the time to see the movie. I
know it’s a teenage romance, but the cystic fibrosis part of the movie is so
much more important than that.
So please, please, please go see this movie! Take your
friends and family with you! I will be seeing it again in the theater for sure.
