by Mike Hilty, Contributing Writer
Young adults novels are all the rage right now. Streaming services and studios are in a gold rush for the rights to adapt these stories to the screen. My sister, who spent time as a teen librarian at our local library, usually kept up with a wide range of young adult novels and would usually recommend ones to check out if I ever had time. The recent history of Y.A. novels on screen is all over the maps in quality. The Perks of Being A Wallflower, The Spectacular Now, and Me, Earl, and The Dying Girl all highlight successful adaptations. Conversely, we get The Giver, The Host, and Beautiful Creatures that missed the mark. Even within a series of novels, there have been hits and misses. The Hunger Games, Twilight, and Divergent series were all uneven, and sometimes couldn’t match the success of the novels.
But now a new player from the young adult novel contenders enters the arena with The Sky Is Everywhere.
Apple TV+’s newest film, based on the 2010 novel by Jandy Nelson of the same name, centers around Lennie (Grace Kaufman), a talented musician struggling to cope with the sudden death of her sister Bailey (Havana Rose Liu). Lennie’s grandma Fiona (Cherry Jones) and Uncle Big (Jason Segel) help her through this dark time while she navigates a complicated love triangle between Bailey’s boyfriend Toby (Pico Alexander) and fellow talented musician at school Joe (Jacques Colimon).
The story itself is sending a distinct message about processing grief. Everyone processes grief differently and everyone has different needs. I appreciated the different perspectives and how each person processes grief in their own way. Lennie’s grief in particular is in focus because she needs different things from different people. She bonds with Toby because she views his grief equal to her since he loved Bailey just as much as Lennie does. Embracing grief is completely valid until it gets to the point where grief becomes a crutch for Lennie to progress her life forward. Joe, on the other hand, represents the future and finding happiness again after tragic circumstances. He didn’t have a previous relationship with Bailey, so all he knows is Lennie and their bond of music. Joe and Toby represent different ways to process grief, and how you can maybe need both at the same time.
The progression of Joe and Lennie’s relationship was striking and something I loved watching. Kaufman and Colimon definitely have chemistry, and watching them geek out over music together was adorable. Also, I have to give a special shout out to Colimon, who oozes charisma and definitely gives my favorite performance. The visual effects when they’re talking about music and the color palates are beautiful and made for a unique visual experience. The Sky is Everywhere is also a love letter to music and the power that it can have in a variety of different ways, from processing death, bonding with others, and falling in love. The blends of classical music and jazz will definitely resonate with a wide range of viewers.
There are a few issues with The Sky Is Everywhere that I struggled to get past. Although Jones and Segel are giving great performances, I wanted to see more of their interactions with Lennie. Their relationship and the role they both play in processing Bailey’s death are important, but glossed over a little too much. In the third act, Fiona gives a talk to Lennie that was really impactful, but it could have hit more if we as the viewers got more screen time and backstory. I could have used more of Lennie’s relationship with her friend Sarah (Ji-young Yoo). Lennie and Sarah are great together, but we also don’t get enough of them. Joe’s brother Marcus (Tyler Loften) doesn’t get enough screen time either, which I would have wanted to see. They abandon the artsy, colorful imagery about halfway through the movie, and it just made the movie feel plain after that.
The main issue I had was with Toby and Lennie’s relationship. I understand why they need each other, but I felt like they crossed a line. I get it — people grieve differently and we also do things in stages of grief that we may come to regret. Their relationship felt a little gross to me at times. This gets called out a few times by Sarah and Joe (there’s a specific gut-punching line in the third act). Toby is processing his grief in a different way, but I can’t help but feel like he’s taking advantage of Lennie a little. I’m wondering if it’s different in the book, but ultimately, Toby and Lennie’s storyline felt off.
The imagery, music, and performances make this a great addition to Apple TV+’s growing film library. What The Sky is Everywhere is saying about processing trauma, especially sudden trauma, is great messaging and demands to be listened to. Unfortunately, certain character relationships either not getting enough screen time, or some relationships feeling off made it uneven, and sometimes a little too melodramatic. I enjoyed it enough to recommend, but not enough to put it in the rotation of movies to watch again.
Grade: C-
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