While his films have definitely skewed towards the arthouse side, Brett Haley has impressed with I’ll See You In My Dreams, The Hero, and Hearts Beat Loud. For me, there’s no filmmaker I look forward to seeing more from, and that makes it tremendously exciting that he’s hooked up with Netflix for All the Bright Places, a romance led by Elle Fanning and Detective Pikachu‘s Justice Smith.
Based on the Jennifer Niven book, All the Bright Places is another film that deals with illness and its impact on young love, similar to what we’ve seen in The Fault in Our Stars and others. The script is co-written by Niven and Liz Hannah, the latter a Golden Globe nominee for The Post. Joining Fanning and Smith in the cast are Alexandra Shipp, Keegan-Michael Key, Virginia Gardner, Luke Wilson, and Kelli O’Hara.
I’m intrigued by the pairing of Fanning and Smith, something I never knew I wanted to see until right now. The film has been in the works for years, since 2014 if my mind remembers right, and went through at least one director before Haley came aboard. His movies tend to focus on a very small group of characters, usually just two people, giving the relationships room to breathe and the actors space to do their thing. Can’t wait to see how this turns out.
SYNOPSIS: Based on the internationally bestselling novel by Jennifer Niven, All The Bright Places tells the story of Violet Markey (Elle Fanning) and Theodore Finch (Justice Smith), who meet and change each other’s lives forever. As they struggle with the emotional and physical scars of their past, they come together, discovering that even the smallest places and moments can mean something. This compelling drama provides a refreshing and human take on the experience of mental illness, its impact on relationships, as well as the beauty and lasting impact of young love.
All the Bright Places hits Netflix on February 28th.
