In rural Ohio, normal 16-year-old Cassie (Moretz) watches in horror as alien ships appear over the planet then slowly unfurl a series of waves that kill off most of humanity. When she gets separated from her little brother Sam (Arthur), she heads off to find him at a military base, where gung-ho Colonel Vosch (Schreiber) is assembling an army of children to fight the invaders. Along the way, Cassie is rescued and helped by hunky farmhand Evan (Roe) before discovering that her high school crush Ben (Robinson) is at the base with Sam.

Director Blakeson makes this premise unusually realistic, without tipping over into fantastical excesses. The alien presence is unsettling because it's mainly caught in the corner of the frame. So the truth seems intriguingly elusive, and no one is particularly trustworthy. This character complexity gives weight to the story's continual twists and revelations. And since everyone is flawed, even the darker, shiftier characters are easy to identify with, avoiding predictability while undermining the obvious plot points (such as the requisite romantic triangle).

Moretz is a bundle of energy as the resilient Cassie, a naturally gifted athlete who is so focussed on her goal that she kind of misses the big picture. Moretz's emotive presence makes her impulsive actions feel genuinely perilous. And she generates very different chemistry with the likeable Robinson and the beefy Roe, who are a bit undefined but have scope for further development. But the most enticing character is Monroe's Ringer, whose back story seems like it might be a great spin-off movie.

There's definitely the sense that this story has been patterned after The Hunger Games, with the reluctant-leader heroine and gang of child warriors, but the themes are distinctly different, exploring communal paranoia and the nature of humanity. Blakeson sometimes over-eggs the symbolism, such as the constant reminder of Sam's cuddly teddy bear. But for the most part he keeps things earthy and edgy, noting that the constant violence has essentially ended these characters' childhood. But it hasn't quite snuffed out their hope.

themes, violence, language

21.Jan.16