OCD & Heartache: ‘Turtles All The Way Down’ Review

Based off of the New York Times best seller by John Green, 2024’s Turtles All The Way Down is a faithful adaptation of Green’s winding esoteric writing style that captures the inner workings of the fragile teenage mind. The film follows Aza, a Latino teenager with OCD, as she tries to balance her relationship with her best friend Daisy while processing her emotions surrounding her father’s death years before. But, when she hears about a missing millionaire in town the two best friends go on the hunt for clues but find themselves instead.

The film’s plot is a faithful look at one of John Green’s best known works. The film’s plot skips some of the more inconsequential pieces of the story as is the case with most adaptations. However, this film takes the approach of using Green’s drawn-out monologues in a unique way. Whereas some adaptations, like The Fault In Our Stars choose to opt for a more character driven approach with a handful of monologues sprinkled throughout the film this film chooses to forefront Ada’s mental struggle with OCD in a few ways. The film uses voice over and a mixture of diegetic and non diegetic inserts to distanciate the audience in accordance to Aza’s emotions. In particular, the opening scene in the psychiatrist’s office uses the jarring cuts between the psychiatrist appointment and Ava’s “thought spirals”, whenever her OCD consumes her total thinking, in a way that is using similar techniques to that of the intellectual montage movement. The film uses the Kuleshov Effect to make the audience feel like they are right alongside Aza in her thought spirals by cutting between real life and Aza’s head. It makes her character feel more relatable by showing the audience, many of whom have never dealt with OCD, what it is like 1st hand to experience OCD. It also gives Aza’s compulsions an excuse to the audience and because of that it adds another layer to her characterization that makes the audience take her side.

The film acts as more of a character study of Aza and her friendship with her best friend Daisy whereas the B-story follows their search for the mysterious Russel David Pickett Sr. who has gone missing under strange circumstances. In trying to find clues related to his disappearance she runs across his son, Russell Pickett Jr, who she met at camp when they were kids. The two reunite and sparks fly. The film details the day-to-day struggle of someone with OCD and how that can affect each of someone’s relationships. The performances capture this dynamic well: Isabela Merced as Aza was a naturalistic performance that grounded the film. The character’s drastic high’s and low’s could be a challenge for some actors especially with making Aza seem likable at her most selfish moments but Merced walks the line well.

The dynamic between Daisy and Aza is a unique friendship that stands out with how fresh the pair feels. Daisy is a distinctly lighter touch in a film that deals with some heavy subject matter. Cree Cicchino adds a degree of levity with her sunny-but-sarcastic demeanor that balances out Aza’s negativity well. The actress adds a nice touch by emphasizing the physical comedy of the character. Oftentimes, adaptations of John Green’s work will only emphasize the written wit of the character’s without adding the touches of physical comedy but Daisys physicality adds another layer to her performance. When she has to pretend that she wasn’t making out with her boyfriend in Pickett’s house was a comedic moment that worked well and helped to show more depth into Daisy’s character while also giving the audience a break from the heavy material. Although the character’s humor can be too drawn out at times especially in the first act when Aza and Daisy are exploring Pickett’s land. Overall, the direction of the principle actors is strong and makes for an entertaining story.

Felix Mallard brought an ernest sensibility to the love interest in the film. The character of Davis, the son of the missing millionaire, is a relatively minor one in this film and whose arc leaves something to be desired. The relationship between Davis and Aza take a backseat whereas the film dives deep into Ana’s relationship with Daisy. However, the performance given by Felix Mallard made up for a lot of the writing’s shortfalls. His usage of his facial expressions and more subtle acting choices, such as his body language in the intimate moments with Aza, make for a memorable performance for an under appreciated character. In one of the final scenes, his body language in the scene already prepares the audience for what’s about to come next. Though some of the film’s themes, especially surrounding the catharsis of Daisy and Aza, are muddied by a fast pace that doesn’t seem to fit the film. The arc that the two friends share is well developed for the first two acts but falls short of the mark in the third. The B story with the missing millionaire has little resolution and Davis’ character suffers for it. The relationship between Davis and Aza feels rushed and its ultimate pay off, though emotionally impactful, feels rushed and uncontextualized.

The tone of the film also feels fresh with a vibrant youth in the creative direction of the film. The cinematography often utilizes one shots of Aza as opposed to the other in any particular scene. It reinforces the isolation that the character feels and when the film does include two or three shots its usually only with the people she feels closest towards. In addition, the color palette is a vibrant example of how younger filmmaker’s like Hannah Marks often choose to have distinct color pallets that harken back to the mise en scene of a Douglas Sirk film. The visual vibrance within the film is definitely one of the highlights alongside some interesting directing choices, like Davis’ 4th wall bre aking monologue.

Overall, the film is a solid adaptation of the novel. For fans of the author and his other film adaptations than this film is definitely going to be one to watch especially as this is one of the more Gen Z friendly of his adaptations. The Bad Guy instrumental over Aza’s thought spiral at school was a unique way to illustrate the character’s innermost anxieties to the viewer in a subconscious way while also pandering to the audience that read this book in high school. For those of you who aren’t familiar with John Green’s writing nor his film adaptations should use this as an on ramp for his work. It’s themes are more personal to that of the author which creates a distinct tone and the presentation of the story is fresh and unique until the third act. Ultimately, the film succeeds in character study of Aza & Dasie’s relationship while also maintaining the heart and soul of the narrative but ultimately finds it self with too many loose strings attached to have a fulfilling ending.