On Saturday, September 7th, sometime around 12:30 in the afternoon, Ryan McNeil’s heart burst in his chest. Doctors on the scene cited the cause of death as an abundance of love and joy that his heart could not contain after witnessing the world premiere of HOW TO BUILD A GIRL.

Ryan is survived by his wife Lindsay, two needy cats, and far too many records and comic books for any grown man. He will be missed.

HOW TO BUILD A GIRL is a tale of frank beauty and self-discovery told through three amazing storytellers. The film is a collaboration of writer Caitlin Moran (upon whose autobiographical novel the film is adapted), director Coky Giedroyc, and actor Beanie Feldstein. The story is that of Johanna Morrigan, who in mid ‘90’s England is trying to do what most 16-year-olds anywhere in anytime are trying to do: figure out who she is, and where she fits in.

Her talent for writing and her passion for music bring her to a music mag where she lands a gig as a rock critic. The job’s demand for razor wit and venomous disposition inspire Johanna to re-invent herself as Dolly Wilde. The bastard lovechild of Lester Bangs and Elizabeth Bennett, Wilde is the cherry-locked gatekeeper of choice music and good taste.

Where the love, the joy, and the heart-bursting beauty come in is watching every single emotion channel through Feldstein-as-Johanna, and the way she lights-up like a goddamned Tesla Coil. Be it with pain, humiliation, joy, infatuation, petulance, humour, affection, or humility…Feldstein is at her very best when she holds nothing back. She breaks our hearts, makes us laugh it off, disgusts us with defiance, and reassures us with inspiration and honesty.

When taken hand-in-hand with her work earlier this year in BOOKSMART, the world has officially been put on notice that Feldstein is here to tell you how the modern world works…and she is not to be argued with.

It’s easy to say that a film about a 16-year-old girl is a story targeted at a specific audience, however to suggest that about HOW TO BUILD A GIRL would be short-sighted.

This is a movie for anyone who has ever found a piece of themselves in a silly pop song, or couldn’t contain an emotion until they wrote it down. It is for those who are trying to figure out who they are, and for those trying to figure out who they should be next. It is a potent medicine for the cynical world that is, and a cry for more people to hail the best parts of the world that should be.

It is death by word, music, empowerment, and cinema…and it is the very best way to die.

Take it from one who did.