If I Stay: The Staycation from Hell

Chloë Grace Moretz is Mia, a teen wrestling with the big question.

                                                                                                         

"To be or not to be" is the question Mia ponders in this four-tissue YA date flick. And not only does she echo Hamlet, she also sees a ghost. Not her father, the king, but herself, a musically gifted high school girl.

Despite the similarities, this movie is more Sparkian —as in Nicholas— than Shakespearean, even if the protagonist is haunted and conflicted and pondering a life-or-death decision.

It all starts on a winter day. School is called off, which means Mia's dad, who is a teacher, is getting a snow day, too. Her mother calls in sick and the family is together. So what do they do? Despite snow so heavy that schools are closed, they pile in the car and head out for a ride.

The Movie Slut found this stupidity difficult to ignore. Still, the movie had its appeal thanks to Mia's parents, who are grownup hippies, and her love for music, which brings Beethoven to the sidetrack.