Content Warning: This article contains discussions/references to suicide and depression.
Authors of teen romance books are good at getting readers to reach for the tissues. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that movie adaptations of these novels are just as sad. Sometimes, they're even more depressing, as viewers get to watch the teenager's pain or tragedy play out on the screen.
Some teen books that become movies are sad because of an illness the young lovers are fighting, like in The Fault in Our Stars. Others are centered around external struggles, which the couple must overcome to be together. Nevertheless, one commonality between all of these young adult romances is that they make audiences extremely emotional.
10 If I Stay (2014)
The movie If I Stay is just as tear-jerking as Gayle Forman's book. Chloe Grace Moretz's Mia is the main character here, a daughter of rockers who instead decides to play the cello. However, funny enough, she ends up falling for a rock singer by the name of Adam. Unfortunately, things take a turn for the worst when Mia and her family get into a car crash.
Mia spends the story in a coma; the twist is that she remains conscious of everything that's happening around her at the hospital. Audiences' hearts break as her family suffers and as Adam begs her to stay. When she makes her decision of if she'll stay, viewers are bound to shed a tear.
9 The Fault In Our Stars (2014)
The author John Green is known for making readers reach for the tissues, mainly because of The Fault in Our Stars. The film is one of the best teen book-to-screen adaptations, and it stars Hazel, a teen that has thyroid cancer. At a support group, she meets Augustus, who had bone cancer but is in remission, and a romance is born.
The movie portrays the insecurities of young love and also displays the reality of cancer patients (especially with the the plot twist in the third act, which feels like a punch in the gut). Nonetheless, the film's poetic dialogue about love and life helps soothe viewers' pain.
8 The Perks Of Being A Wallflower (2012)
The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky makes readers and viewers feel "infinite," just like his main characters. In both the book and the film, Charlie, a freshman full of anxiety, is taken under the wing of two lively seniors, Sam and Patrick. Although Charlie and Sam's relationship isn't the center of the story, it's a significant element.
Charlie's love for her and his friends allows him causes him to become confident. However, his journey to happiness is rocky. Viewers may cry a few times as they witness Charlie's experiences with clinical depression and watch his loved ones struggle with their own problems.
7 Before I Fall (2017)
Before I Fall centers on the popular high school teen, Sam, who experiences a situation like Groundhog Day. Every morning, Sam wakes up on "Cupid's Day" and dies in a car crash multiple times. However, through the time loop, she also finds love, as Sam falls for Kent, a sweet boy who has a crush on her.
Throughout the story, Sam also becomes closer with her friends and family well. That being said, tears come into play later on when she learns about her classmate Juliet committing suicide - and Sam's way of saving Juliet at the end is heroic, but tragic.
6 Love, Simon (2018)
The movie Love, Simon is based on Becky Albertalli's book, Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda. It was a big hit, so much so that the LGTBQ movie even got its own spin-off television series called Love, Victor. Love, Simon is a coming-of-age story about a closeted gay student named Simon who has a crush on his email pen-pal known as "Blue."
Overall, it's an upbeat film, but it becomes heartbreaking when Simon's sexuality is revealed to the entire school. Audiences cry as his friends turn against him for his lies, but the tears turn happy once Blue's identity is revealed and his friends forgive him.
5 A Walk To Remember (2002)
Though Nicholas Spark's A Walk to Remember is set in the '50s, the movie occurs in the early 2000s, but that's the only major difference between the two stories, as both are similarly sentimental and sad. The narrative focuses on Jamie and Landon, one of the best Nicholas Sparks movie couples - even if their love story is an unfortunate one.
Landon is a bit of a bad boy in school, while Jamie is the daughter of a minister. Despite their differences, the two fall head over heels for each other. Sadly, Jamie has leukemia, and their story is cut short. Nonetheless, their love is everlasting.
4 Five Feet Apart (2019)
Most YA books are written before film adaptations are shot. However, Five Feet Apart wrapped filming several months before Rachael Lippincott's novel was published. It may be another coming-of-age film where the characters date while having an illness. But in this case, Stella and Will both have cystic fibrosis and must avoid physical contact.
Watching them grow closer but not being able to touch is heartwrenching. Additionally, as one gets better, the other does not. As a result, the characters deal with the pain of letting each other go.
3 The Spectacular Now (2013)
One of Miles Teller's best movie roles is in The Spectacular Now, based on Tim Tharp's novel. It tells the story of Sutter, a high school senior struggling with alcoholism. Soon, he begins a relationship with Aimee, who also has family problems.
The heartbreak of the movie comes from Sutter's relationship with his father, who's also a drunk. Their reunion is awkward and difficult to watch. This film is so sad because the romance and lives of the characters are realistic and not idealistic, unlike many other young adult stories.
2 The Sun Is Also A Star (2019)
The Sun Is Also A Star, written by Nicola Yoon, makes people cry out of frustration. In the book and film, the 17-year-old Natasha and her family are at risk of being deported back to Jamaica. When Natasha gets a lawyer to help her family, she meets Daniel, a poet interviewing for admission to Dartmouth.
The film saddens audiences, as it shows Natasha's struggle to keep her family in the country. Additionally, Natasha and Daniel's love story only can last twelve hours if she gets deported. Therefore, their relationship's timetable is distressing for audiences who want the couple to be together.
1 It's Kind Of A Funny Story (2010)
The movie It's Kind Of A Funny Story (based on the book by Ned Vizzini) is about Craig, a teen who faces a lot of academic pressure. When he starts to have suicidal thoughts, he goes to a psychiatric ward. There, he bonds with a man named Bobby and dates Noelle, a fellow patient.
The film's exploration of mental illness is emotional for viewers, and they root for Craig's health to improve. However, despite the movie's heavy content, it leaves audiences with a hopeful message.
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July 14, 2021 at 12:00AM
