Me Before You- Conflict Over New Film

Demi Nicks
Jun 3, 2016
3 min read

You may have noticed that persons with disabilities are making a fuss about the soon-to-be-released romantic drama Me Before You. On the surface, the film appears to be a harmless, heartwarming story. However, I, as well as many others, are noticing and are uncomfortable with the underlying messages the film presents about living with a disability. While I don’t want to say too much without having seen the entire film (and it’s possible after watching the film that my opinion could change), I feel the desire to share a few things from the perspective of a woman with a disability. [Note: SPOILERS TO FOLLOW] To give a very short, general plot summary, able-bodied Lou Clark (played by Emilia Clarke) becomes the caretaker of recently paralyzed Will Traynor (played by Sam Claflin) and the two fall in love. Even so, Will ultimately chooses to end his life by way of assisted suicide. It appears that the character’s primary reasoning for making this decision is to avoid being a burden to those around him, as well as general feelings of being a worse and lesser version of his previous, healthier self. I don’t deny that these feelings are somewhat understandable in the situation of someone’s life being suddenly altered by an accident like the case of Will’s character. Unfortunately, media is very powerful and the fact that for many, this movie may be their only insight or experience with disability, is also very unfortunate. While Will Traynor’s reality may represent a certain population of the world with disability, his reality is certainly not the only. In fact, when looking at the causes of physical disability, the most common causes are chromosomal/genetic mutations, fetal abnormalities, prematurity/complications during pregnancy, and finally, acquired causes such as trauma. Many of those who have dealt with disability since birth, like myself, look at the movie trailers for Me Before You and think, “Oh no,” because the film will undoubtedly perpetuate the negative stereotypes that many well-adjusted and happy persons with disabilities try to fight. The character of Will Traynor would rather die than live life disabled, and sadly, many in society will sympathize. Another of my bigger qualms with the film is its message that the disabled are not capable of normal, intimate relationships. Nearly all of the trailers I’ve seen show Will saying to Lou, “I don’t want you to miss all the things that someone else can give you.” I myself have had moments where I doubted my adequacy and ability to make someone happy. What person hasn’t? But let’s think a minute— every person, able-bodied or not, has strengths and weaknesses they bring to a relationship. It look me a while to realize that a lot of my self doubts aren’t actually because I think myself inadequate, but because of society’s less-than view of disability. So to summarize, a large majority of the physically disabled, despite the challenges they face, would NOT rather die than be disabled. The disabled can have normal, romantic relationships. The disabled can be happy and love life. The disabled can have careers and families. They can have fun and get an education. I implore audiences to remember these things if they choose to see the film, and to be aware of Hollywood’s use of pity to provoke an emotional reaction. Final points for thought on a couple related issues: The director of Me Before You has stated that they were really careful about making sure Sam Claflin held his head correctly and had the correct amount of movement etc. while playing Will… Why not use an actually disabled actor?? Hmm… If the disabled had easier access to things such as healthcare services, personal care assistants, travel, transportation, general accessibility, and the ability to actually earn decent money or get married without threat of losing healthcare and other benefits, maybe those feelings of being burdensome might not exist… Hmm…