NOW IS GOOD, by British writer-director Ol Parker, charts the last months in the life of Tessa, who has terminal cancer. A pumped-up version of Lana Del Rey’s BORN TO DIE plays over the opening credits, emblematic of Tessa’s increasingly haphazard attempts to do “as much as I can, as fast as I can.” Meeting next-door neighbour Adam makes Tessa focus on what’s important in life – to enjoy simple pleasures with the people you love.
A small ensemble cast are led by Dakota Fanning as Tessa, expertly walking a tightrope between adult insight and teenage rage. Her character’s deadpan pronouncements stop the film from becoming an earnest issue movie. Jeremy Irvine as Adam is a counterpoint to Tessa – recently bereaved; he is unwilling to face life. Irvine’s performance is perhaps less nuanced than Fanning’s, but then we are never allowed to see much of his grief. Tessa’s best friend Zoey (Kaya Scodelario) is underwritten, her character more of a cipher that is unwilling to give birth to new life.
… she will miss sharing in their lives, ‘now’ being the only time she has …
The ever-dependable Paddy Considine, with an almost permanent hangdog expression, plays Tessa’s father, a so-called “cancer obsessive” who is still searching for a way to prolong his daughter’s life. A scene in which he pleads with Tessa “take me with you” is heart-wrenching and it’s a testament to Considine’s skill that he does not overplay the emotion.
The theme of carpe diem versus not living life is shown in various ways – Tessa urges Adam to apply to college and her father to start looking for work, insistent that life will carry on without her, but also upset that she will miss sharing in their lives, ‘now’ being the only time she has.
Parker directs for the most part in a pedestrian manner, save for a few fantastical sequences, such as when Tessa climbs a huge tree in the forest. While the film avoids emotional schmaltz for much of its running time, in the final scenes it descends into familiar weepie territory. In summary: a laudable effort from a uniformly good cast, but it’s unclear what NOW IS GOOD adds to the canon of similar issue films.
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