I recently attended a showing of the PG-13 movie “Before I Fall”, and I was highly impressed by it, but before I launch into my opinion, here is a synopsis, so that you can gauge your interest level:
High school senior Samantha Kingston seems to have it all—the perfect group of friends, wealthy parents, an adorable little sister, ultimate popularity, the perfect boyfriend, etc.—yet she doesn’t appreciate any of it, until the night that changes everything. Following an explosive confrontation between Samantha’s friends and resident “weirdo” Juliet Sykes, Samantha and her gal pals leave the party, where it all occurred, and start to make their way home through the thick sheets of rain and layers of indignation. Unfortunately for the girls, they never make it, and instead, get into a car crash that sets off a supernatural chain reaction. In lieu of going to any underworld or holy place, Samantha wakes up on the day of the crash, completely undamaged, with an unusual second chance. Samantha will be forced to live in a “Groundhog’s Day”-esque alternate reality (where she will have to live the day over and over again), until she becomes the person she should have been all along.
This movie was a very intense one, as I am sure you can probably tell by the synopsis. The settings, the lighting, the camera angles, everything, seemed to serve some kind of purpose, for either intensity’s sake or for hidden symbolism. There were serious questions about life addressed in the movie, and though it hid behind the guise of your typical teenage-focused film, it exposed true to life problems—how we sometimes lash out at others, how we sometimes mistreat those that love us, how we sometimes do not think of the consequences of our actions, etc. The plot, definitely contributed a lot of suspense and emotion to the story, yet the characters themselves were so full of messages, lessons and empathy that they are what truly captured my attention. There was something about each of the characters, from sweetheart Kent to bad-to-the-bone Lindsay that resonated with me, after the film, and this is, in part, the triumph of the actors.
Some of the famous faces included in this movie were the beautiful and talented Zoey Deutch, who has starred in films such as “Why Him?” and “Vampire Academy”, the interesting and alluring Halston Sage, who has acted in films such as “Goosebumps” and “Paper Towns”, and Logan Miller, who has been involved in productions such as “The Walking Dead” and “A Dog’s Purpose”. Though these are just a few of the talented actors in this film, I believe that the acting in this movie was superb.
I cannot think of a negative comment for this movie, which is unusual for me, and I thoroughly recommend the movie “Before I Fall”. P.S. Do not forget to check out the New York Times Bestseller book version, by Lauren Oliver, if you are a read-and-watch kind of movie viewer.

More information on this film, including critic reception, parent’s guide and trivia, can be found on imdb.com.