This movie has to offer two things in it's favor: a different, and surprisingly dark perspective on war, and Saoirse Ronan, who is as brilliant as ever. But the total lack of the big picture is problematic sometimes, even when I understand it's purpose to get the viewer into the perspective of the protagonist. It also has big parts that feel like your average first love teen drama (that's rated R).

I really hate it when people make a meal out of hating a movie. It's usually condescending and they act like they're the smartest person in the world for not liking one particular movie, and it always makes me roll my eyes. Having said that. Absolutely fuck this movie. It's terribly written, directed, and edited. It jumps from one horribly ""edgy""ù dark scenario to the next. From the murder of a drunk child, to needless sexual assault where the women are abandoned, to yet another dead child, to several instances of incest cousin fucking that you're supposed to think is nice? The overarching ""doomsday""ù plot is intentionally vague and never explained, but that doesn't work when every single character is completely uninteresting, undeveloped, and forgettable. Also. The small gesture that makes a character fall in love with their cousin is the weirdest, least romantic shit I've ever seen. The only acceptable response to that kind of behavior is ""what the fuck are you doing? Stop that""ù. I LEGITIMATELY thought there was going to be a vampire subplot for a second. But there wasn't. They just thought it was romantic. This movie is vile. And it wasn't worth the battery it drained from my girlfriend's phone. I reserve bad movies like this for watching on flights like I just did with this one. But still, holy shit.

Based on an acclaimed novel, How I Live Now is a wartime coming of age tale. The story follows a young girl sent to live with relatives in England where she falls in love; but when she and her lover are separated by war she’s forced to grow up fast. Saoirse Ronan leads the cast, but overall the performances are weak. And, the plot is poorly paced with some strange uses of voice over. How I Live Now has some interesting things to say about surviving war, but it’s not done very effectively.

A teenage romance surviving Britain's nuclear terrorist attack.