If I Stay

Review By: John Delia

Directly targeted at teens and softhearted female romantics, for them the film If I Stay hits the sweet spot.  The screenplay taken from a young adult novel by Gayle Forman gets a sugar coating, works some magic and provides a vision most likely to be enamored by teen girls that are significantly worldly and have precocious desires.  Most tweens and youngsters could be a bit bored and miss the nuance and message of the story, but if not you should need a Kleenex or two and a shoulder to cry on during the tearjerker ending.

Nerdy and shy Mia Hall (Chloe Grace Moretz) has played the cello since she was a young girl. Her love for the instrument came naturally since her father encouraged her, being a member of a popular rock band.  In flashbacks, we see that with Mia; however, it’s a natural instinct and she’s a musical prodigy along with her young brother Teddy (Jakob Davies) who loves playing the drums.  She would rather practice way beyond a natural limit than do girly stuff with her best friend Kim (Liana Liberato).  Mia’s playing her cello in the music room at school one afternoon and Kim notices that Adam (Jamie Blackley), the high school heartthrob and lead singer of the rock band Williamette Stone, has stopped to watch Mia. 

A day or two later, Adam comes over to Mia by her locker and to her shock invites her to a classical concert.  Encouraged by her mother Kat (Mireille Enos) and Kim, she accepts the date.  A bond starts between Adam and Mia with both taking interest in each others music.  Taking a weekend away from their humdrum life, Kat and her husband Denny (Joshua Leonard) take Teddy and Mia on a family trip to see the grandparents.  On a snow covered highway, a car swerves into their path and puts everyone in the hospital with life threatening injuries.

Being in a coma, Mia sees herself with an out-of-body experience as the doctors work on her, her parents and brother.  We watch as she tries to understand what is happening to her and her family.  Director R.J. Cutler (“American High” TV series) uses flashbacks several times throughout the film to show Mia growing up and portraying reasons for her decisions and choices in life. He provides a lot of character buildup giving the audience a chance to see what Mia’s parents are like, her best friend Kim’s attachment, her reasons why she’s so in love with her cello and more.  He then drops the bomb on Mia’s party and puts her in the position to choose whether she should move to the hereafter or fight to stay alive.

The character of Mia could not have gone to anyone, but Chloe Grace Moretz who creates the teen with her radiant qualities wide open for the audience to see.  Mia has to be depicted as an introverted young teen who trusts others to help her sprout her wings as she exits the cocoon she has made for herself and Moretz nails it. She’s not the Kick Ass kid who tore up the screen a few years back to critical applause, but a soft magnetic charmer that is way beyond her breakout dramatic performance as Abby in Let Me In. The film survives the ordinary storyline due to her performance, and makes If I Stay extraordinary for the target audience.

In support, Jamie Blackley gives a fine portrayal as Adam, a hip rock front man who’s on his way up the ladder with a record contract in the wings.  He could have anyone as his girlfriend, but he’s smitten by this young girl who has the same love of music.  The two have a very good chemistry at times and make the romance believable enough to carry out the final premise.

If I Stay has been rated PG-13 by the MPAA for thematic elements, and some sexual material. The film also contains teen drinking so be cautious when deciding to allow immature children see the film. 

FINAL ANALYSIS: A good teen flick. (B)