All My Life

We could all use an occasional remainder to live every day to its fullest, but All My Life dishes up that message with too much sugar and too little subtlety.

Although based on a true story that made national headlines in 2015, this tearjerker frequently feels inauthentic by indulging in cutesy contrivances at the expense of emotional complexity.

Regardless of whether you’re familiar with the source material, from the moment its two impossibly charming and attractive singles lock eyes in a sports bar, you pretty much know the roadmap for this fairytale romance with a tragic twist.

Jenn (Jessica Rothe) is a graduate student and Sol (Harry Shum Jr.) is in marketing yet aspires to become a chef. She encourages him to follow that path, and their relationship follows the usual path of moving in together, then marriage.

An intense pain in Sol’s hip is initially diagnosed as an ulcer, but later revealed to be terminal liver cancer. Medical bills quickly consume the funds the couple set aside for their dream wedding. With the prognosis growing dire, their circle of friends pitches in to raise funds and rescue their nuptials before time runs out.

At least director Marc Meyers (My Friend Dahmer) and rookie screenwriter Todd Rosenberg don’t dwell on the exposition — boiling most of their courtship down to a few zippy montages.

Rothe (Happy Death Day) and Shum (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny) convey a genuine chemistry that transcends the script, and to the supporting actors deserve credit for elevating their roles above standard-issue quirky comic relief. Bonus points, too, for a proposal scene featuring a group singalong to the Oasis ballad “Don’t Look Back in Anger.”

However, straining to be profound by dropping pearls of wisdom about how every day is precious, the film glosses over the most challenging aspects of their struggle with Sol’s deteriorating health. Instead, it’s perhaps too upbeat.

The true-life wedding provided a tribute to the power of friendships and the generosity of strangers, even though the sanitized movie doesn’t resonate as deeply as it should while navigating tricky emotional territory.

As the film reminds us, the average life consists of 27,375 days. It’s best not to spend part of one watching All My Life.

Rated PG-13, 93 minutes.