Theodore Finch and Violet Markey: two teenagers who are drastically different from the start, but grow to meet one another’s similarities throughout their journey of love.

Netflix has done a phenomenal job in regards to truly creating a movie that embodies the spirit of growth. Learning is a difficult and time-consuming skill, but within All The Bright Places, the main characters have been taught by one other how to cope with loss and grief.

Violet—played by Elle Fanning—has been recently pushing through tough times with her family; they lost both a daughter and a sister in a car accident. Eleanor Markey had been the only one to not survive in the icy bridge accident months before. Since then, the Markey family’s life has been nothing but dark and depressed. Violet lost her best friend, and she was unsure of how to cope with her heartache—but then came Theodore Finch.

Theodore (Justice Smith) was known as “the freak.” He was not like any other average student at their high school, but he was fully aware of that. Although he did not embrace that label, he was otherwise focused on how to view the beautiful things in life. 

His rough past had scarred him. He had an abusive father and an absent mother; but nonetheless, his amazing and supportive sister stuck with him through it all. Alexandra Shipp as sister Kate portrayed the perfect role of an auxiliary sibling who put others before themselves, and with that, she truly helped Theodore every step of the way to the roundabout of recovery.

Violet’s first impression of Theodore was the social norm: weird, quirky, and unpredictable. The beginning scene presented a nail-biting scene—Violet standing on the edge of a bridge—in which she was standing on the very bridge her sister Eleanor was found dead upon. This particular spot brought back distressing memories to Violet, ones in which could not escape from her wandering mind. Theodore ended up saving Violet that day, and that memorable moment initiated the start of their relationship.

Violet was determined to get Theodore’s false nickname out of her head, although she still found herself doubtless at times. Theodore’s intimate adoration for Violet was portrayed right from the start, and somehow, that deep adoration continued to grow throughout the film. He introduced her to happiness again—something Violet had not seen in a long time.

In regards to Violet’s friendships at school, they weren’t real; all she wanted was a friend. She had reiterated that many times, and she was in desperate need of a caring figure in her gloomy life.

The acting and character development throughout the movie made the viewers have instant empathy and passion for their relationship. The talent was moving and heartfelt, and those traits remained present from start to finish.

The overall plot reeled me in from the very first scene. It reeled me in immediately and I fell in love with the characters and their intimate personalities right off the bat. The film is a perfect length for an attentive attention span, and I thoroughly enjoyed this adventure of a movie.

All The Bright Places involves an average and expected storyline, yet the execution of the character identity is what made the movie unique and exceptional. The relationship between main characters Theodore and Violet resembled growth, love and learning experiences.

Based on the 2015 novel written by Jennifer Niven, this movie taught me a valid life lesson: to focus on the beautiful things in life, and with that, to keep on searching for all of my own treasured bright places.