Tomorrow, When the War Began (2010)

When their country is invaded and their families are taken, eight unlikely high school teenagers band together to fight.

Director:

Stuart Beattie

Writers:

John Marsden (novel), Stuart Beattie

Stars:

Caitlin Stasey, Rachel Hurd-Wood, Lincoln Lewis

8 wins & 14 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Caitlin Stasey	...	Ellie Linton
Rachel Hurd-Wood	...	Corrie Mackenzie
Lincoln Lewis	...	Kevin Holmes
Deniz Akdeniz	...	Homer Yannos
Phoebe Tonkin	...	Fiona Maxwell
Chris Pang	...	Lee Takkam
Ashleigh Cummings	...	Robyn Mathers
Andrew Ryan	...	Chris Lang (as Andy Ryan)
Colin Friels	...	Dr. Clements
Don Halbert	...	Mr. Linton
Olivia Pigeot	...	Mrs. Linton
Stephen Bourke	...	Police Officer
Kelly Butler	...	Mrs. Maxwell
Julia Yon	...	Mrs. Takkam
Dane Carson	...	Mr. Mathers

Storyline

Seven Australian teenage friends from a small town go on a camping trip to be with nature. During their trip, they see military aircraft fly overhead. What they didn't know was their country was being invaded by another country. Returning home, they discover that they are at war. With no training, they band together to fight the enemy.

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Plot Keywords:

australian | military | insect cage | exploding airplane | knocked unconscious | 

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Taglines:

Where Were You When Everything Changed?

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some violence

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

Australia

Language:

English

Release Date:

24 February 2012 (USA)

Also Known As:

Guerreiros do Amanhã

Filming Locations:

Blue Mountains, New South Wales, Australia

Box Office

Budget:

AUD 25,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

AUD 3,862,193 (Australia), 5 September 2010, Limited Release

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$16,525,360, 28 December 2011

Company Credits

Production Co:

Ambience Entertainment, Omnilab Media

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Lincoln Lewis wears a maroon and gold sports jersey. His father, rugby league legend Wally Lewis played mainly for the Brisbane Broncos which has maroon and gold as its team colours.

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Goofs

When Ellie, corrie and Kevin are attempting to get a better look at the Showground, just before Ellie runs up to the fire truck, they all lean up against a blue Suzuki the number plate on said car is CR 22 xx it goes from clean to dirty in half a second.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Ellie Linton: We're not going to hold back. Recording it like this, it's um, it's so important to us. I guess it's our way of telling us that things matter. That we mean something. Maybe... some of the things we've done... The friends that we've lost, hopefully it all makes a difference somehow.
[regaining her composure]
Ellie Linton: There's only one way to do this. And that's to go back to where this all began.

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Connections

Featured in At the Movies: Summer Special 2010/11 (2010)

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Soundtracks

Steer
Written & Performed by Missy Higgins

User Reviews

Captivating content and wonderfully ominous mood, but subpar acting.

I feel embarrassed to admit that I've never read John Marsden's much loved and critically acclaimed seven-part 'Tomorrow' series, the first novel of which is the source material for this Aussie blockbuster. By all accounts the books are terrific and they have sold between 2 and 3 million copies in Oz alone. However, thanks to my shortcomings as a reader, my cinematic experience was massively enhanced when heading in to see Stuart Beattie's directorial debut as I had absolutely no idea what was going to happen, a major bonus as the story is undoubtedly the strongest element of Tomorrow.

Though the trailer hinted at a darker side it emphasised the large-scale components enough to suggest to me this was going to be a run-of-the-mill action flick. Whilst the explosions and gunfights are decent (especially for a film funded by local resources) it's the slow-building and hugely impactful narrative that drew me in. The plot develops in such a way that it's difficult to be sure what will happen next – the appositely strange mixture of foreboding dread and stirring hope cements this – and the intermittent dramatic twists are injected at the perfect moment. It's not a thriller mind, no clean answers are given and you'll not be indulged with simple pleasures like: what country is the occupying force from? Or why are they here? Tomorrow is more interested in examining the blurred line between right and wrong; the lengths we'll go to in order to protect ourselves and our loved ones.

It's not all smooth sailing though, this first instalment certainly has its faults. Lincoln Lewis overdoes the 'true blue' shtick to the point of aggravation, the dialogue is delivered poorly in parts – a scene with the quite obviously beautiful Fiona (Tonkin) expressing how she doesn't think she's good looking is hard to swallow – and a cameo from an experienced Australian thespian is downright awful. Nascent leading lady Stasey greatly improves upon her "Neighbours" standard of work and, despite seeing her soapie roots coming through every now and then, makes for an easily watchable protagonist.

The captivating content and wonderfully ominous mood are slightly undone by subpar acting from the supporting cast, but this remains a recommendable Aussie film.

3.5 out of 5 (1 - Rubbish, 2 - Ordinary, 3 - Good, 4 - Excellent, 5 - Classic)