How I Live Now (2013)
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An American teenager and her British cousins must navigate a crumbling world following a nuclear explosion.
The story
American teenager Daisy is sent to the English countryside to stay with her aunt and three cousins. Upon her arrival, she is met with reports of a bombing in Paris and a tense atmosphere. Daisy, who is initially abrasive toward her cousins, begins to develop feelings for her eldest cousin, Eddie. However, their peaceful summer is shattered when a nuclear bomb is detoned in London, triggering a state of martial law and the collapse of infrastructure. Faced with the choice of fleeing to safety or staying with the ones she loves, Daisy must navigate the immediate dangers of a world suddenly plunged into chaos.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Following a nuclear blast in London, the girls and boys are forcibly separated by soldiers for evacuation. Daisy and Piper are placed in a military household and assigned to a farm. After a local worker is killed in a terrorist attack, the two girls flee into the countryside. They endure a grueling journey, witnessing the aftermath of a massacre and the mistreatment of captives. Daisy eventually finds the body of Isaac and, after a confrontation with armed men, reaches a deserted house where she finds Eddie. He is severely injured and traumatized. In the aftermath of the war, as a ceasefire is declared and the country begins to recover, Daisy cares for Eddie, who remains mute and suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder.
- First release year
- 2013
- Runtime (minutes)
- 101
- Production countries
- Canada; United Kingdom
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Kevin Macdonald
- Writers
- Tony Grisoni · writer; Jeremy Brock · writer; Penelope Skinner · writer
- Cast and characters
- Saoirse Ronan · Daisy; George MacKay · Eddie; Tom Holland · Isaac; Harley Bird · Piper; Anna Chancellor; Corey Johnson
- Genres
- romantic; speculative drama; war drama; independent
- Themes
- love; survival; war; trauma
- Tone and mood
- grim; tender; searing
- Premise and plot tags
- post-apocalyptic; romance; coming-of-age
- Source material / true-story basis
- 2004 novel of the same name by Meg Rosoff
- Reception
- The film received mixed reviews, with critics praising Saoirse Ronan's performance and the screenplay's subversion of YA clichés, while others found the narrative uneven.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 66% · scale: percentage · review count: 109; Metacritic · score: 57 · scale: 100 · review count: 29
- Production trivia
- The film was set for release in Australia on 28 November 2013.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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