Five Feet Apart is schmaltzy but moving, says Rashid Irani

FIVE FEET APART

• Direction: Justin Baldoni
• Actors: Haley Lu Richardson, Cole Sprouse
• Rating: 2 / 5

A bittersweet romantic drama revolving around two terminally ill teenagers, Five Feet Apart is more engrossing than recent young adult adaptations like The Fault in Our Stars. But that’s not saying much.

The title refers to the distance that patients suffering from contagious respiratory disorders must maintain from each other in order to prevent cross-infection. But of course the protagonists, finding themselves within five feet of each other, end up in love, decide they must throw caution to the winds, and embrace their mutual attraction. Set almost entirely within the confines of a hospital, the plot is predictably schmaltzy.