Star attacks cynicism as she defends movie

VANITY FAIR star Olivia Cooke, inset, has said she thinks there is not enough sentimentality in the world and people have become too cynical.

The actress is currently starring in the drama

Life Itself, penned and directed by This Is

Us creator Dan Fogelman, and said working with the filmmaker gives her hope.

The film, which also stars Olivia Wilde, Oscar Isaac and Antonio Banderas, proved controversial with critics when it was first screened at the Toronto International Film Festival last autumn, but Fogelman defended his use of sentimentality in a column in trade publication Deadline.

He wrote: “It is not easy, these days, to choose to see the beauty in the human experience.

“It is not in vogue and it is certainly not considered ‘cool’ or ‘artistic’.

“Ugliness envelops us right now.

“The internet is filled with trolls and sceptics, haters and hackers.

“It is a scary choice, these days, to make anything that leads with its heart. “Leading with your heart exposes your most crucial organ to those very trolls and sceptics and yes, sometimes, the most cynical of film critics. “But I choose to see connections in our existences.

“I choose to see the romance, and the beauty that is often born from tragedy.” Responding to Fogelman’s column, Cooke said: “I thought it was bang on.”