Love You Anyway

Charlie gillespie and reign Edward's were fantastic. I was swept away by their onscreen friendship. I could relate to the struggles gillespie was amazing he made me cry and feel his emotions.

Fresh! Beautiful! Sweet! Painful! Relieving! Heartwarming! Some of the words that best describes Love You Anyway. Although I can say that the movie is not for everybody but it does hit right in my feels for me. When I was about the same age as Lucas and Mac, I sort of had the same situation, suicidal thoughts, the drinking, but I got passed that now. For those who hadn't been through the same situation, they may find the movie just "good" but for someone who's been in it, and did not show any signs til it was too late to family and friends, it was a beautiful movie that seemed like the story was ripped out of my journal in my teen years. Mental health is vital, and not a lot of people know that or acknowledge that, and that's why I applaud the creator and crew of the film for showcasing and giving us this movie. I recommend it to people who've been and are in a tricky mental debate, struggle, and situation, AND I also recommend it for those who know people going through it. Great job to Charlie and Reign, and to all the cast and crew for the emotions portrayed in the film. Oh and, I cried a lot. At 3am! LIKE A LOT! It's such a fresh take on movie directing too, and most of the time, I got the feels as my mind sort of forgot that they were just acting. Damn I even yelled NO when a specific scene came. And, it's so freaking painful to see Charlie in pain and in tears, my mind thought it was a real video when he was only acting. It's just magnificent! I love the film.

I initially heard about this movie and got excited about it for one reason: CHARLIE GILLESPIE. Same for many people. He's a crazy beautifully talented and caring human. But as I watched it the deeper I got in the show I realized that writer/ director Anna Matz could have taken my diaries from high school and turned them into a movie. I felt so connected to "Mack" (Reign Edwards) in the first 30 minutes of the show than anything or anyone in my 38 years of life. I will continue to watch this over and over and recommend it to everyone and anyone. If you are going through something y'all reach out. Please.

There is a reason why fake documentary-style amateur footage isn't strung together to make movies. After 5-10 minutes of it, most people are sick of the shaky cam, poor framing, and disjointed feel as we jump from scene to scene. There is a visual beauty element to movies that is sorely lacking here thanks to all of the faux-amateur footage.

As for the sad coming of age story, it could have been okay if presented in a more conventional manner. The heavy subject matter becomes somewhat maudlin and hard to take seriously thanks to the filming gimmick.

What a journey they both take you on! Some moments were hard to watch. Yet relevant to what so many of us have lived & survived in our own families. Thank you for bringing awareness to teen suicide & mental health. And thank you for giving us the gift of Charlie Gillespie on the screen. Kept hoping he would sing too. He's so talented & gifted. Draws you in every time.