Review of The Fundamentals of Caring (2016) by Humberto G — 23 Feb 2017

In need of a quirky and uplifting wine night with your girlfriends? Invite Craig Roberts, Paul Rudd, and Selena Gomez into your living room with the movie, The Fundamentals of Caring. This drama will be sure to make an already emotionally unstable night with your girlfriends rockier by uncovering the past and present emotions from the characters.

The film gets underway with Ben, played by Paul Rudd, becoming a certified caregiver. Ben is revealed as a failed journalist and is struggling with a heartbreaking personal problem. Ben's dilemma allows him to interview with his first client, Trevor, played by Craig Roberts. Trevor is an 18-year-old boy struggling with muscular dystrophy and a dry sense of humor.

Rob Burnett, the director, decided to play with viewers' heart strings in an unpredictable and unseemly manner. As Trevor's disease accelerates, weakness and loss of muscle mass restricts his ability to move. After moving from the UK to Seattle, Trevor is in need of a new care giver. Trevor hires Ben following his appeasement from Ben's answer to "How would you wipe my ass?" Trevor's sarcasm and wit is no match for his muscular dystrophy.

Their sardonic relationship gets you in the feels when Elsa, Trevor's mother, played by Jennifer Ehle, tells Ben that Trevor has roughly ten years to live. Ben develops a passion to make the rest of Trevor's life extraordinary. He does this by convincing Elsa to let them go on an unforgettable road trip.

The pair journey to the places Trevor had watched every morning on television, and eventually are accompanied by a few more passengers. Sitting from inside a diner, Trevor notices a girl trying to hitchhike. Like most teenage boys, he is too afraid to speak to her. Ironically Ben, the one who won't sign his divorce papers, is here to help out the young lover. Dot, played by Selena Gomez, is a troubled runaway with a foul mouth. Trevor quickly falls in love with her hard sense of humor and offers her a ride.

Burnett's character choice was marginally original. The chance that Ben, who is grief stricken due to the loss of his son, decides to become a care giver for a teenage boy is slightly coincidental. Having a British boy in wheel chair fall for a cigarette smoking, tough rebel hasn't exactly been done before. Though Burnett's choices were predictable, this film will leave you with a sense of togetherness.

The meaning of The Fundamentals of Caring is beyond the acting, of which was truthful and convincing. Trevor with a physical impairment and Ben with an emotional impairment, discover a friendship like no other. This movie will bring you some smiles and tears but overall will change your perspective of living with a disability. So pop open your bottle of wine and be grateful for the life you have been given. Olivia Clark.