When going to see If I Stay, I was expecting the typical teenage sap story of a girl and a boy falling in love against all odds. There would be relationship drama and an argument that would potentially lead to their breakup but somehow the boy would win her back. This movie was, surprisingly, not like that at all. Yes, there was a love story and drama, but it was suspenseful watching a young girl decide whether she stays for love or give up and leave.

In the movie, Mia Hall (Chloë Grace Moretz) is a talented cellist who lives with her rocker parents and little brother Teddy (Jakob Davies). Adam (Jamie Blackley), “the cool guy at school”, sees her playing one day and instantly falls for her. Adam is the lead singer of his rock band that is rapidly becoming more popular. Adam and Mia’s relationship is rocky as each of them focus on their completely different futures and is tested when Hall gets into a fatal car crash and has an out of body experience. It is up to her whether she stays in the world or dies.

If I Stay is a great example of both a diverse family’s ability to support one another and a young love’s success despite not being in a standard relationship. The movie was interesting because it is from Mia’s perspective with lots of little clips that focus on her memories and how everything led up to her accident.

This movie didn’t create the typical Hollywood perfect relationship of a boy hurting a girl and then some how winning her back. I was surprised how well this film also demonstrated a young girl in a relationship standing up for herself and not letting a boy get in the way of her dreams. I’m not saying Adam was holding her back, but Mia was aware of what she wanted and didn’t get caught up in the drama. There were also the classical parts that made all the girls tear when the guy shows his love for the girl.

Chloë Grace Moretz played the role beautifully and had me crying throughout the movie. I definitely recommend this movie to everyone, not just teenage girls. It was different than the typical romance/drama film and was really well directed. Overall, it was a great cast and a film that deserved four out of five stars from IMDB.