If I Stay (2014)

Even though Chloë Grace Moretz had her big breakthrough as Hit Girl in 2010 (in the movie Kick-Ass), she already had been acting since 2004. She starred in Carrie and could be seen in various comedys. In If I Stay, a romantic drama, she is Mia Hall, a talented cello player. She still lives with her parents, but is about to take a very important step in her life. When she is involved in a car crash though she ends up in a coma and the question is whether she’ll survive.

The movie mostly consists of flashback in which you lean how she met her first love, Adam (Jamie Blackley), and the issues the two of them have. Both Mia and Adam are musicians and they haven’t found the right way to deal with each other and give the other person space so they can grow. The scenes after the accident are set in the hospital, where Mia (like a ghost) can listen in to the reactions of her friends and loved ones. She has to decide if she still wants to fight to get out of her coma or to step into the white light.

If I Stay is a film which has been clearly made with a young audience in min Typical teenage issues are dealt with (first love, important life decisions, insecurities), but director R.J.Cutler know how to inject the right emotion into the movie with the scenes set in the hospital. An actor who really stands out in those scenes is Stacy Keach as Mia’s grandfather. He only has a few scenes, but he’s very memorable. Chloë Grace Moretz isn’t bad, but doesn’t succeed in every scene to convincingly emote what her character is feeling. It makes If I Stay a movie which a young audience will really appreciate (and who will probably give this film a higher score) with its various romantic moments. Still there is enough in other scenes which another type of audience will also be able to appreciate.