It’s nice to see a young adult novel come along not related to a dystopian society. Imagine if you had the chance to relive the last day of your life over and over again for a week. That’s the fascinating premise in ‘Before I Fall.’ Now picture the most popular girls at a cool high school somewhere in the Pacific Northwest. These girls have it all. They have the coolest fashion, the most envied clique and the hottest boys after them. If “high school is just a blip,” these young women will have pleasant memories to last a lifetime after they move on to their amazing futures. ‘Before I Fall’ could have been just another forgettable teen drama but it is not. It actually is a smart, entertaining and emotionally honest depiction of teen girls navigating the socially awkward world of high school.
It is significant to note that two females bring this story to life on the big screen. While many are describing it as a “Groundhog Day” for teenagers, screenwriter Maria Magnetti and director Ry Russo-Young expertly capture the emotional journey of a young woman. Our heroine Sam (Zoey Deutch) is forced to relive the last day over and over again until she makes some serious realizations about her life. She essentially is stuck in a time loop that allows her to fix the mistakes she made. It sounds like a downer of a movie but it actually is not at all. Sam gets picked up for school by one of her besties Lindsay (Halston Sage). She takes it for granted being in the popular crowd. She also seems unaware of how cruel her “mean girl” friends can be to others not in the in-crowd at school.
There is a haunting voiceover that tells us, “Maybe for you, there’s a tomorrow. But for some of us, there’s only today.” Sam wakes up every morning at 6:30am on Feb. 12 to a pop song on her smartphone. At first she ignores her parents and little sister and rushes out the door where her BFF Linsday is waiting with her SUV. They proceed to pick up the rest of their crew Ally (Cynthy Wu) and Elody (Medalion Rahimi). When Elody hands a condom over to Sam, we learn that she plans to lose her virginity to her boyfriend Rob (Kian Lawley) that night. The other big event at school is “Cupid Day.” It’s a cruel event that rewards the popular kids with roses sent from other students. Not surprisingly in English class Sam gets a bunch of roses from admirers including one from her childhood friend Kent (Logan Miller).
The repetitive cycle continues until the SUV leaves a party where Sam is involved in a fatal car crash. Director Russo-Young keeps the story fresh by making variations to Sam’s last day. Deutch delivers an impressive performance that makes us care about her fate. At first, Sam ignores the people that care about her most but slowly she realizes that she has the opportunity to make it the best day of her life. After she goes through a rebellious phase in a sexy dress and hurts everyone around her, her friend Kent passes a note to her in class, “This is not you.” It’s the touching moments when she appreciates her friends and family that make ‘Before I Fall’ so emotionally resonating. There are some memorable casting choices particularly in her young sister Izzy (Erica Tremblay, sister of Jacob Tremblay from Room) and her mother played by Jennifer Beals of ‘Flashdance’ fame. Sage as Lindsay also gives a compelling performance as the perfect queen bee mean girl to a tee.
Sam of course learns some valuable lessons on her journey. It is obviously a metaphor for all of us to appreciate the present moment because there are no guarantees that a future awaits us. She learns how to treat others with compassion and to not just follow the crowd. She’s essentially learning how to be nice to people. The story never gets repetitive as Russo-Young reveals new layers to Sam’s personality. Like many popular girls, she can be cruel and self-possessed but Deutch brings so many heartwarming nuances to Sam that we are invested throughout her journey. ‘Before I Fall’ is a thoughtful and poignant young-adult drama that is worth your time.
