This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties. It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

Basically, it's better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all. Although the focus is mainly on the rather disturbed (and I won't say harmless, because in typical American male fashion he readily resorts to violence as a way to resolve his problems) Enoch, the story is driven by Annabel, a vivacious young girl with a sad secret. That they are both good for one another is undeniable, even for Annabel's protective (but not overly so) older sister. I wasn't sure how Hiroshi fitted into this until the end, and that realisation added much to the depth of the film. I won't say any more to avoid spoiling the journey for others.

Charming is the word I could use to describe the effect this movie had on me. It felt so natural and real. I was sucked into that world so easily in a way that I forgot that the two love interests were acting. Mia Wasikowska has managed to worm herself into the top 10 of my favorite actresses & I have only seen 5 movies that she has been in. That's some incredible talent right there. The score of this movie is also fantastic. Just by telling you that it opens up with a Beatles song tells you a lot about it. One of my favorite musicians Sufjan Stevens' songs also feature in this movie. This adds to the natural feeling of the movie as you do not feel as if it's trying to force you into feeling emotions you don't feel. It's subtle that way. The most impressive thing was how they managed to make a sad storyline so beautiful and not a typical sob story. I was smiling at the end and not crying like I had expected. You learn about the characters and understand how this story will end pretty early on in the movie. "It's a story about a terminally ill teenage girl who falls for a boy who likes to attend funerals." Most of the time this would ruin the story for me and turn it into a snooze-fest. However, I did not even once feel that way with this movie. I fell in love Mia's character so easily. The wardrobe she had was perfect for the character of Annie. Her love interest Enoch played by Henry Hopper was great. I am going to watch every movie he appears in from now on because I was impressed. This movie had the formula of a typical romantic drama but could stand on its own, with its charm and adorableness of the characters. I would recommend this to anyone who likes cutesy love stories.

Gus Van Sant probably understands the minds of youngsters better than any director around and he proves it again in this rhapsodic film about loss and love and loss again. His cast is so well selected that they seem to be an ensemble from a stage company, so well integrated are their relationships in this beautiful film written by Jason Lew.Enoch Brae (Henry Hopper, son of Dennis Hopper, and a very fine actor) survived a car accident in which his parents were killed: he remained in a coma and missed their funeral and the chance to in some way say goodbye. Living with his Aunt Mabel (Jane Adams), he now spends his days not attending school but instead going to strangers' funerals. One funeral organizer (Christopher D. Harder) notices his repeated appearances and tries to have him arrested for trespassing but he is saved by a strange girl named Annabel (Mia Wasikowska in a brilliant performance). Annabel also attends funerals: she tells Enoch that she works with children with cancer at a hospital. Enoch is wary of making friends - his only ally being a Japanese kamikaze pilot ghost Hiroshi Takahashi (Ryo Kase) with whom he talks about everything. But gradually Enoch and Annabel bond and Annabel reveals to Enoch that she doesn't work with 'cancer kids', she is one - she has brain cancer and is on short-term time. Annabel's sister Elizabeth (Schyler Fisk) and mother Rachel (Luisa Strus) accept Enoch's growing supportive love for Annabel. As Enoch grows form his experience with Annabel he no longer needs the presence of his ghost or his need for attending funerals and instead spends his time giving Annabel the best three months (remaining) of her life. How the story draws to an end is so enchanting that to share it would deprive the viewer of the magic of this film.This is one of those perfect little films that glow in the heart. Mia Wasikowska and Henry Hopper create such memorable characters that once seen they will never be forgotten. Highly Recommended. Grady Harp

The movie in itself is an often viewed topic, but as they say... it doesn't matter that we had have seen the same topic over and over again, it's about how it is done. In my opinion the main characters were equally important and that gives a great balance. The soundtrack is beautiful and those scenes with little details are just perfect, although I didn't feel an authentic pain in the film and that excessive positivism made me mad almost the entire movie. The conflicts were pretty simple and the reactions were too complicated for the conflict. It's a good movie, above the average because it has those pretty details and that carefree puberty that is what is missing in other movies dealing with this topic and -Contradicting my first point of view- that excess if positive attitude made that those pretty details authentic and jovial.In my humble opinion.