High schooler Greg, who spends most of his time making parodies of classic movies with his co-worker Earl, finds his outlook forever altered after befriending a classmate who has just been diagnosed with cancer.
Seventeen-year-old Greg has managed to become part of every social group at his Pittsburgh high school without having any friends, but his life changes when his mother forces him to befriend Rachel, a girl he once knew in Hebrew school who has leukemia.ndndWritten by
Toby Padilla
All of the scenes taking place inside Greg's house were actually filmed in Alfonso Gomez-Rejon's childhood home. See more »
Goofs
When Greg is playing the video that Earl left at his house, the Mac video player that he is playing it in reads 00:00:00 throughout and there is no active pointer running through the time line at the bottom (as is standard) See more »
Quotes
Earl:
We tried a lot of different ways of making a film for you, but they were all too goofy or irrelevant, or just not what we wanted. So, now I'm gonna talk to you directly. Um, all right, I'm gonna be honest here. Okay? Sometimes, white girls are particularly stupid. I mean, everybody's stupid, but white girls, you know... they think they better than everybody and self-centered and pretend they not. But you aren't like that, you know. Um, it's just crazy how patient you've been. You know, I know ...
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Alternate Versions
There was a scene in which Greg films himself for Rachel's movie, and ends up saying, "Hi, Rachel. Um, Earl's right. All the ways that we tried to make a film for you, just kind of turned out completely horrible. So, yeah. It got me thinking about the reason that we wanted to make this film for you in the first place, and, you know, when it comes right down to it, and you just say it, without screwing around, um, I believe in you. You can do it." Those last lines are the same as what all the other students said, and Greg and Earl disliked when they said that. In this scene, Greg looks at a bunch of cameras on his shelf, realizes how phony he is, and turns off the camera. It was cut from the movie because the director thought the movie would be better without it, even though it was hard to say goodbye to. See more »
Minuetto 'Jeux D'Enfance'
from the motion picture Rosso come il cielo (2006) (Red Like the Sky)
Written and Performed by Ezio Bosso
Courtesy of Creazioni Artistiche Musicale C.A.M. Srl
Under license from Sugar Melodi, Inc. See more »
User Reviews
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl: Proof That Laughter Can Help Ease the Pain of Dying
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl offers a very accessible, honest, and humorous look at not only how someone deals with being diagnosed with cancer, but it also turns the clichés of the coming-of-age story on its nose, and the people behind this film are able to do that by finding the perfect balance between drama and comedy within this unfortunate tragedy.
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl centers around Greg (Thomas Mann), a very sarcastic and self-loathing high school student going into his senior year. Greg believes that if he shuts everyone out of his life so that he won't have to deal with anything, then things will be okay, and this gives him a sort of self-gratification. So to uphold his philosophy, he doesn't try to be friends with anyone, but makes sure he's on low-key, good terms with everyone in his school. However, he does spend his time with his co-worker/"friend" Earl (RJ Cyler) making parodies of classic foreign cinema together. However, when Greg learns from his mother that a childhood friend of his, Rachel (Olivia Cooke) is diagnosed with Leukemia, Greg begins a blossoming friendship with Rachel; a friendship that would take him through the best of times, the worst of times, and eventually shape him into the person that he will become.
While this film definitely shares characteristics with 2014's The Fault in Our Stars (which is a pretty good movie in my opinion), this film to me is more heartfelt and inventive than TFiOS ever was. And most of this has to do with the brilliant screenplay written by Jesse Andrews, who happened to write the book that his film is adapted from. The way that Andrews addresses how to deal with this sickness is wonderfully human and clumsy; whether through comedy, wit, or drama, Andrews finds a way to make the whole scenario relate in some way, shape, or form to anyone and everyone.
The direction and cinematography are absolutely incredible. Alfonso Gomez-Rejon, who is known for his work on American Horror Story, and was a personal assistant to Martin Scorsese, shows not only his inventiveness, but his quirkiness as a director on this film. Gomez-Rejon shows his talent with stop motion animation, long panning shots, flashback sequences, and some very long takes that really allow the actors to give the best performances possible. There are even times when this feels like a Wes Anderson film, and this can also be contributed to the gorgeous cinematography. Chung-hoon Chung oozes with style behind the camera, and ultimately the film has a very vibrant look that gave the story being told so much life. These people tell this story with so much care and thought, it's evident that the filmmakers truly respected Andrews' work on the screenplay and wanted to do it the justice it deserves. And thankfully, we got it here.
The performances in this film are all magnetic. Every single one of these actors were able to hold their own on screen. The parents in the film, played by Molly Shannon, Connie Britton, and the always delightful Nick Offerman, all do fantastic work. Their relationships with their children are all very grounded in reality and realistically portrayed. Jon Bernthal is incredibly funny as Greg's history teacher, and is able to depict the "generic cool teacher who understands the main protagonist" in a different, refreshing light. However, the three leads all steal the show. RJ Cyler serves as a foil to Greg's character. Instead of BS-ing people in order to avoid any direct confrontation, Cyler's Earl is very frank with his language and emotions, and gets right to the core of the problem with Rachel. Olivia Cooke gives a very heartfelt and understated performance in this film, and watching her suffering through this sickness that's eating her up is truly heartbreaking to watch. However, the whole film rides on Thomas Mann's shoulders. His detached performance, and the way he handles Rachel's sickness is so realistically somber. His character actually reminds quite a bit of the characters Anthony Michael Hall played in older John Hughes films. He does a fantastic job with the darker comic moments in the film, and the way his character develops throughout the film is nothing short of stellar.
This film won both the Grand Jury Prize and the Audience Award at the Sundance Film Festival this past January, and it's not hard to see why. Me and Earl and the Dying Girl is a film filled with heartbreakingly realistic performances, quirky direction, gorgeous cinematography, and spectacular writing. Whether your an art-house fan, a fan of cinema in general, or just the casual moviegoer, there's something in this film that everyone can relate to. It's in wide release right now, so do yourself a favor and go see it, because it's one of the best films of the year.
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Me and Earl and the Dying Girl offers a very accessible, honest, and humorous look at not only how someone deals with being diagnosed with cancer, but it also turns the clichés of the coming-of-age story on its nose, and the people behind this film are able to do that by finding the perfect balance between drama and comedy within this unfortunate tragedy.
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl centers around Greg (Thomas Mann), a very sarcastic and self-loathing high school student going into his senior year. Greg believes that if he shuts everyone out of his life so that he won't have to deal with anything, then things will be okay, and this gives him a sort of self-gratification. So to uphold his philosophy, he doesn't try to be friends with anyone, but makes sure he's on low-key, good terms with everyone in his school. However, he does spend his time with his co-worker/"friend" Earl (RJ Cyler) making parodies of classic foreign cinema together. However, when Greg learns from his mother that a childhood friend of his, Rachel (Olivia Cooke) is diagnosed with Leukemia, Greg begins a blossoming friendship with Rachel; a friendship that would take him through the best of times, the worst of times, and eventually shape him into the person that he will become.
While this film definitely shares characteristics with 2014's The Fault in Our Stars (which is a pretty good movie in my opinion), this film to me is more heartfelt and inventive than TFiOS ever was. And most of this has to do with the brilliant screenplay written by Jesse Andrews, who happened to write the book that his film is adapted from. The way that Andrews addresses how to deal with this sickness is wonderfully human and clumsy; whether through comedy, wit, or drama, Andrews finds a way to make the whole scenario relate in some way, shape, or form to anyone and everyone.
The direction and cinematography are absolutely incredible. Alfonso Gomez-Rejon, who is known for his work on American Horror Story, and was a personal assistant to Martin Scorsese, shows not only his inventiveness, but his quirkiness as a director on this film. Gomez-Rejon shows his talent with stop motion animation, long panning shots, flashback sequences, and some very long takes that really allow the actors to give the best performances possible. There are even times when this feels like a Wes Anderson film, and this can also be contributed to the gorgeous cinematography. Chung-hoon Chung oozes with style behind the camera, and ultimately the film has a very vibrant look that gave the story being told so much life. These people tell this story with so much care and thought, it's evident that the filmmakers truly respected Andrews' work on the screenplay and wanted to do it the justice it deserves. And thankfully, we got it here.
The performances in this film are all magnetic. Every single one of these actors were able to hold their own on screen. The parents in the film, played by Molly Shannon, Connie Britton, and the always delightful Nick Offerman, all do fantastic work. Their relationships with their children are all very grounded in reality and realistically portrayed. Jon Bernthal is incredibly funny as Greg's history teacher, and is able to depict the "generic cool teacher who understands the main protagonist" in a different, refreshing light. However, the three leads all steal the show. RJ Cyler serves as a foil to Greg's character. Instead of BS-ing people in order to avoid any direct confrontation, Cyler's Earl is very frank with his language and emotions, and gets right to the core of the problem with Rachel. Olivia Cooke gives a very heartfelt and understated performance in this film, and watching her suffering through this sickness that's eating her up is truly heartbreaking to watch. However, the whole film rides on Thomas Mann's shoulders. His detached performance, and the way he handles Rachel's sickness is so realistically somber. His character actually reminds quite a bit of the characters Anthony Michael Hall played in older John Hughes films. He does a fantastic job with the darker comic moments in the film, and the way his character develops throughout the film is nothing short of stellar.
This film won both the Grand Jury Prize and the Audience Award at the Sundance Film Festival this past January, and it's not hard to see why. Me and Earl and the Dying Girl is a film filled with heartbreakingly realistic performances, quirky direction, gorgeous cinematography, and spectacular writing. Whether your an art-house fan, a fan of cinema in general, or just the casual moviegoer, there's something in this film that everyone can relate to. It's in wide release right now, so do yourself a favor and go see it, because it's one of the best films of the year.