tomorrow there's no school

Tomorrow, When The War Began (12A)

7 / 10

Director: Stuart Beattie
Starring: Caitlin Stasey, Rachel Hurd-Wood

Seven teenagers head for a weekend retreat in the Australian bush. When they return, their homes are empty and their country has been invaded by a strange, occupying force. Determined not to surrender to the enemy, the teens begin a guerilla war for freedom....

Apparently, if you are an Australian of a certain age John Marsden's Tomorrow series of books probably defined your adolescence. This would largely explain why my Australian wife (who grew up in the late 80s and early 90s) immediately added this move to her 'must see' list when it came out. Squarely aimed at older kids, Tomorrow, When The War Began is aimed at the same demographic as films like I Am Number Four - an intelligent film for older children.

Featuring an extremely pretty cast chock full of ex Neighbours and Home and Away stars, Tomorrow, When The War Began is surprisingly entertaining. Clearly one of a long series rather than an individual story in its own right (there are seven books and so plenty of work for the cast over coming years, presumably) the film manages to explore both the human reaction to war and the Lord of the Flies-esque relationships between a bunch of teenage children.

It's clearly not the biggest budget film ever made - some of the effects leave a little bit to be desired - and I wasn't entirely convinced by the flimsy justification for the war, but as a pure piece of entertainment there are much, much worse films than Tomorrow, When The War Began. If you fancy a couple of hours of gawping at very pretty people blowing things up (and who doesn't?) this film is for you.