I went in blind.
A colleague offered me tickets to a new movie coming out starring Drew Barrymore and Toni Collette called Miss You Already.
‘Wonderful,’ I thought. An easy-to-watch chick flick. Exactly what I needed. But, as I seldom watch trailers (they give away the entire thing), I was not prepared for the deluge of feelings coming my way.
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Jess (Barrymore) and Milly (Collette) are lifelong friends. They’ve been through everything together. Now in their late 30s/early 40s, life has started to throw some struggles their way.
Jess and her partner are struggling to get pregnant and resort to IVF, and Milly finds out she has breast cancer.
The film deals with the impact that these struggles have on their lives and family's - Milly and her husband have two small kids - and how they come to terms with her cancer.
The rawness is almost overwhelming.
Cancer is a fickle bitch. It affects 1 in 2 men and 1 in 3 women, so it's likely you know someone that's suffered.
Miss You Already delves into the nitty gritty. We feel for Jess as she sits by her best friend's side during every chemo visit and she's there when Milly shaves off her hair (Toni Collette actually shaved her head for the role).
Films surrounding cancer are generically sad, morbid and leave you feeling somewhat deflated. My brain hurt from crying so much after Jodi Piccoult's My Sister's Keeper. And I'm not a cryer.
But this one's different. You leave the theatre feeling uplifted, like everything's going to be okay. As much as the film centre's around cancer, it's just as much about the power of friendship and companionship.
What happens in the end? Well, you'll just have to watch and see.
WATCH the trailer below - it doesn't give too much away, I swear.