We’re introduced to her around the time she first encounters Augustus at a cancer support group meeting.

The movie is told from Hazel's perspective and, although her voiceover narrative isn't a guarantee that she'll survive the proceedings, it offers a sense of reassurance. The only thing missing at this point is a blinking neon sign demanding: 'Cry, dammit!' It's obvious The Fault in Our Stars doesn't want a dry eye in the theater.

Only toward the end, when events reach their terminus, does Boone overdo the manipulation. The movie captures this sense of immediacy in an effortless, unforced manner. They live in the present because they may have no future. The average teenager isn't aware of his or her mortality Hazel and Ausgustus have no choice but to be intimately acquainted with theirs. Hazel Grace Lancaster (Shailene Woodley) and Augustus Waters (Ansel Elgort) are in many ways more alive than most due to their constant awareness of the fragility of their existences. To call a movie in which both leads have cancer and are dancing with the Grim Reaper a 'feel good experience' isn't as unlikely as it might seem at first. In the era of the auteur director, it's sometimes refreshing to find a filmmaker who recognizes the value of self-effacement. Josh Boone's direction is unremarkable but he understands how to get out of the way and let the actors do their thing. The acting is top-notch, the characters are three-dimensional, and the dialogue is sharp and witty. Adapted from John Green's best-selling YA novel of the same name, The Fault in Our Stars merits notice not because of its formulaic storyline but because of the heartfelt manner in which it is presented.

Calling The Fault in Our Stars a 'teenage cancer romance' might be understating the film's laudable qualities but it's also a reasonably accurate three-word summary of the plot.

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