Tomorrow When the War Began [M]

A group of seven friends decide to go on a camping trip before school starts back up again so they all pile into the Ellie’s dad’s land rover and head into the bush: a beautiful secluded spot ironically known as ‘Hell’. When they return home, it’s to empty houses, no phone reception, and no sign of life for miles. They soon discover that a war has taken place, a war that no one saw coming. Cut off from their families and friends, home becomes the real Hell and they regroup and retreat back into the bush where they are faced with a choice: they can either sit and do nothing waiting to be captured or accept that they are no longer teenagers but soldiers trapped behind enemy lines and fight. 

I am inflated with Aussie pride right now. Everything about this movie is right and it stands up amongst Australia’s real blockbusters. The words ‘Australian cinema’ indicate a handful of things to people: gritty and amateur film technique, exhibitions of Aussie culture, and small budgets. But Tomorrow When the War Began demands attention and says to the world “Aussies can make a ‘Hollywood’ picture too!” The biggest perk of this movie is that it has that sleek and shining ‘Hollywood blockbuster’ feel and timbre to it, turning the global perception of Australian cinema on its ear somewhat. The action sequences and special effects in this movie are just as sophisticated and impressive as any action movie to come out of America and this makes me really proud. 

A group of seven friends decide to go on a camping trip before school starts back up again so they all pile into the Ellie’s dad’s land rover and head into the bush: a beautiful secluded spot ironically known as ‘Hell’. When they return home, it’s to empty houses, no phone reception, and no sign of life for miles. They soon discover that a war has taken place, a war that no one saw coming. Cut off from their families and friends, home becomes the real Hell and they regroup and retreat back into the bush where they are faced with a choice: they can either sit and do nothing waiting to be captured or accept that they are no longer teenagers but soldiers trapped behind enemy lines and fight. 

Based on the book by John Marsden, this movie is a great exhibition of local talent in every way. The central cast all work so brilliantly well together and the chemistry between all of them feels so genuine, making it easier for audiences to relate to them. What’s really great and what I particularly loved about this movie is that it’s all these little stories rolled up into one and there is this great balance of genre elements that keep it flying. It begins almost like a teen friendship comedy film with the promise of a hilarious road trip. We begin with girls gossiping about sex and relationships; a really beautiful mark of the innocence of teenagers and how even when they are on the cusp of adulthood, they are still unlike adults and could be for some time. I do believe that certain events have to happen to you to make you really feel like a man or a woman and this movie is a visual representation of that belief for me. The camping trip itself is kids just having a fun time: there is drama, romance, and great banter between them all made more entertaining and wonderful when we look at the mismatched group of friends we’ve got. We then get the war/action genre that comes with the story and this provides a stronger establishment for the emotional and conflicting parts of the tale. Amongst all this we have relationships shaken, new ones formed, and dramas unfold as fear takes hold, personalities change under pressure, and bravery is found. 

Set in country Australia, this movie is still a great depiction of contemporary Aussie culture: its multiculturalism and its modern sophistication. 

Starring Caitlin Stasey, Rachel Hurd-Wood, Lincoln Lewis, Deniz Akdeniz, Phoebe Tonkin, Chris Pang, Ashleigh Cummings, Andrew Ryan, and Colin Friels, Tomorrow When the War Began is a great movie filled with action, friendship, bravery, romance, suspense, and comedy. It’s wonderfully balanced and leaves you hankering for the next instalment. I really loved it.