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How I Live Now

How I Live Now

Drama · Romance · Science Fiction · 2013

An American girl, sent to the English countryside to stay with relatives, finds love and purpose while fighting for her survival as war envelops the world around her.

Movie details

How I Live Now

“Love will lead you home”

2013 Drama · Romance · Science Fiction 1h 41m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.6 / 10

Community rating

An American girl, sent to the English countryside to stay with relatives, finds love and purpose while fighting for her survival as war envelops the world around her.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over How I Live Now?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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Light of My Life

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Blue Story

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Kevin Macdonald

Written by

Jeremy Brock · Penelope Skinner · Tony Grisoni

Saoirse Ronan

Saoirse Ronan

Daisy Ryback

George MacKay

George MacKay

Eddie

Tom Holland

Tom Holland

Isaac

Harley Bird

Harley Bird

Piper

D

Danny McEvoy

Joe

Anna Chancellor

Anna Chancellor

Aunt Penn

Corey Johnson

Corey Johnson

Consular Official

Court is in session

Put How I Live Now on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Sentimental Softie

“Sincerity is not manipulation.”

The film risks embarrassment to make emotion communal, and that openness is harder than fashionable detachment.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“The strings are showing.”

Every cue tells you exactly what to feel and when, leaving sentiment to do the work character should have done.