Sleeping Beauty slept for years before The Prince woke her up, and it’s only with true love’s kiss that shook her from her sleep. In If I Stay, true love is there but the fight is within. In the aftermath of a collision with another car, young Mia (a somewhat miscast Chloe Grace Moretz) and her parents and younger brother are all majorly impacted. When Mia lands herself in a coma, it’s HER decision weather or not she lives or dies. Watching everything from the sidelines and walking around the hospital like a ghost, she contemplates what she has and who will be there when (and if) she wakes.

Last week YA Mag did a write up on Jamie Blackley (boyfriend Adam to Mia), and the piece only gives a glimpse into just how awesome he plays Adam on screen. His presence is in the room when watching is swoon-worthy to the max. On the other hand, Chloe as lead Mia falls short and doesn’t give a real feel to who this girl Mia is. It’s all there, yet somehow Moretz never really becomes her. When considering a YA actress portraying the lead heroine from an iconic novel, this performance lies nowhere near what we saw from Shailene Woodly in The Fault in Our Stars, and yes we have to compare the films. Moretz managed to do the role justice in the end, but an unknown actor would have been better for the part.  

Even though Gayle Forman’s If I Stay came out before John Green’n TFIOS, the films have come out so close together that it’s almost impossible not to look at one without the other, and the ‘feels’ in Stars are way more intense than anything you’ll see in Stay.

Stay is a good film on its own, the characters are well developed as is the storyline. With great talent from Jamie, Liana Liberato (best friend Kim), and the supporting adults, the film tells a simple story with some great life lessons: “Sometimes you make choices in life and sometimes choices make you.” So get your tissues ready and go see this film.