MISS YOU ALREADY. Don’t Let Go Of Your Tissues

There’s a certain kind of film where you start crying before the story has even properly begun—and you don’t let go of your tissues until the end credits roll. Sometimes not even then. Miss You Already, directed by Catherine Hardwicke, definitely belongs in that category.

As a young girl, Jessie moves with her father from the United States to the United Kingdom. On her first day at a new school, she meets the vibrant and magnetic Millie, and thus begins a friendship meant to last a lifetime. Years pass, girls become women, men and children enter the picture. The recklessness of youth gradually gives way to stability, yet their bond seems unchanged—until Millie is diagnosed with cancer.

In theory, this is a film about deep, unconditional friendship. Jess serves as the narrator, guiding us through their shared world from her own perspective. From the very beginning, the girls are inseparable. From the outside, their relationship looks beautiful, almost ideal. And yet, it’s hard to shake the feeling that something about it is quietly toxic.

Energetic and self-absorbed, Millie dominates the life of shy, reserved Jessie. She initiates every adventure and reaches every milestone first: marriage, pregnancy, the dream house renovation. Jessie lingers in her shadow, warmed by her charisma but slowly losing herself in the process. While Millie is raising two children, Jess is struggling to conceive. After rounds of treatment, she turns to IVF. When she finally achieves the pregnancy she has longed for, she finds herself unable to share the news with the person closest to her—because Millie is fighting for her life.

Jess chooses silence and devotes herself to supporting her friend. She even agrees to a spontaneous trip to Haworth, home of the Brontë sisters and the birthplace of Wuthering Heights, a novel the women have cherished since girlhood—risking not only her health but her long-awaited pregnancy. When Jess discovers what truly motivated Millie to plan the trip, the fracture between them leads to months of estrangement.

The film is undeniably moving. It is also painfully formulaic. Two powerful and timely themes—cancer and infertility—almost automatically guarantee an emotional response. It’s fertile dramatic ground, but here it often feels handled too safely. Characters drift into clichés and the narrative leans on familiar beats.

At times, it feels as though the story was assembled from the most obvious tropes. While Hardwicke attempts to offer a slightly deeper look at illness (Jess’s pregnancy storyline is notably sidelined, much like Jess herself), the genuine emotional pull of Millie’s suffering is accompanied by a lingering sense of artificiality. Not every cancer patient commissions a custom wig from a Hollywood stylist. Not every hospital room resembles a boutique hotel suite.

Fortunately, the film is elevated by its performances. Toni Collette is extraordinary as Millie. Regardless of her physical transformation, her talent remains formidable—she moves seamlessly between bravado, terror, melancholy, and biting humor. A single glance or gesture is enough to charge a scene with emotional weight.

Opposite her, Drew Barrymore delivers a far more restrained performance, but no less compelling. Her quiet, internalized portrayal proves once again that she is capable of far more than romantic comedy charm.

Miss You Already is a classic tearjerker—with a predictable structure and a familiar emotional payoff. It’s the kind of film designed for a girls’ night in, engineered to tug unapologetically at the heartstrings. One only wishes it had aimed a little higher.

Still, if the film leaves you wanting to crawl under a blanket and hold someone you love a little tighter—do it. That instinct is worth listening to. And afterward, make time for those medical check-ups you’ve been postponing for months.