In the Australian country town of Wirrawee Ellie (Caitlin Stasey) is preparing to organise a camping trip with six of her school friends. They include Corrie (Rachel Hurd-Wood) and her boyfriend Kevin (Lincoln Lewis),Fiona; a beautiful girl who has never been camping before, Homer (Deniz Akdeniz); a Greek boy who is regularly in trouble with the police, Robyn (Ashleigh Cummings); who comes from a strict religious family and Lee (Chris Pang); who normally works in his parents restaurant but is invited because Ellie likes him. These varied personalities have different reactions to the bushland but they eventually agree that they should regularly return to this part of the outback labelled as "Hell". When they arrive back home though they are dismayed to find that the phone lines are dead and that Ellie's dog has been killed. They are unable to find any other working signals on their phones or in the other houses. Everyone in the town, including their parents, seems to have vanished. They soon realise that an Asian military force has invaded Australia and is holding people captive. The kids decide to fight for their freedom and work to sabotage their invaders.

One of the most significant moments in Stuart Beattie's career as a screenwriter was to pen the screenplay for Michael Mann's dazzling thriller Collateral (2004). The Australian's script reminded Hollywood of many of the essentials that had been lost in mainstream genre cinema: the necessity for deep characterisation, regularly driven by smart, witty conversations that were enjoyable to listen to. Beattie has been involved in various blockbusters since then. He worked on the stories for all three of the Pirates of the Caribbean films. He also penned the script to the film Australia and has been involved with the much anticipated Halo film project. With a desire to be at the helm of his own writing though, Beattie has opted to make his directional debut by adapting the first novel in John Marsden's immensely popular young adult series "Tomorrow, When the War Began" (1993). The film's timing could not be better. It is set in the present and hints at Australia's sometimes dangerous nationalist attitudes to other countries. Kevin says at one point: "you're either in or you're out", echoing an infamous catchphrase by George W. Bush. The film also reveals its invaders to be an Asian military force, something that is never unveiled in the novels. Frustratingly for Beattie and fans of the novel though, this adaptation seems to have been pulled in two different directions for two separate mediums. Potentially interesting material and moral ambiguities are either simplified or minimised to single lines of dialogue.

Marsden's stranglehold over the screenplay cannot be understated. He reportedly rejected numerous scripts and film offers prior to Beattie but was pleased with this treatment when he read through it. It makes few changes to the essentials of the novel. The personalities of the characters are just like the novel, constructed rather than subtle. Marsden seems to have forgotten that time has moved on and those that cherished the novel in the 90s have grown up and presumably become more sophisticated. There's a lack of nerve here to let the audience think for themselves and allow them to delve into more complex issues. When Ellie kills her first soldier she looks over the body and her voice-over tells us how scared the soldier looked and how she must have been just like her. It's not enough for the camera shot and the perspective to exist by itself, replacing the language of Marsden's novel. It's a reoccurring issue with a lot of the dialogue in the film. The characters exist for Beattie to voice moral questions, just in case the audience didn't get them. Robyn has an argument with the group about not wanting to kill the soldiers because of her religious values. What happens to her is predictable and exists on a surface level, with little reflection. You'd almost wish William Munny would show up and say: "It's a hell of a thing, killing a man". He doesn't and the film's constraints towards it themes and the potential of its subtext are obvious.

Some critics have spoken about the problematic decision to employ a novice director to work with such inexperienced actors. It's a legitimate concern as most of the performers, bar Stasey, lack presence on screen. They have mostly worked just on television and they're only given a small corridor to work in because of the specific outline of what their characters are supposed to be and sound like. There's a lot of clunky, wooden dialogue that really only serves as a mouthpiece for the familiar questions relating to warfare. Thankfully, the technical aspects of the film are much more impressive. For a debut director, Beattie handles the action very well, with some genuinely exciting set pieces. There's a very well staged escape from a showground and a slick chase against a group of armoured buggies. Each these action scenes look and sound terrific. They're very exciting and intense.

Tomorrow, When the War Began might satisfy young viewers with its slick action sequences and its stereotypical character traits. Yet those who grew up with the novels will be disappointed that the material here has not expanded or been updated thoroughly enough. This is a straight adaptation that cannot break from the shackles of the original author. Beattie has not been allowed to delve deep enough into new ideas about warfare or the psychology of the cartoon-like characters here. The probability of a sequel is high but it would seem that the children of the revolution have arrived too little too late.

Adapted from a series Young Adult stories. This is a poor remake of Red Dawn, the right wing fantasy from 1984. Apparently Ronald Reagan had a private viewing and gave the John Milius movie a standing ovation.

Tomorrow, When the War Began has the same xenophobic attitude. Australia has been invaded by some pan Asian coalition who want to share resources and territory. Some hope, white Australians did not share it with the original inhabitants of the country!

Ellie Linton (Caitlin Stasey) and childhood friend Corrie (Rachel Hurd-Wood) go camping with some friends. However they see some military aircraft. When they return to town, houses are abandoned and locals have been rounded up in a camp.

Discovering that Australia has been invaded, the youngsters decide to fight back by blowing up a bridge to one of the towns and disrupt the supply chain.

Colin Friels shows up briefly and gives everyone else an acting lesson. This is poorly acted and directed. A snoozefest that hoped to kickstart a series of sequels but it bombed in the international box office, especially Asia.

Ellie Linton (Caitlin Stasey) and Corrie McKenzie (Rachel Hurd-Wood) are best friends in the small Australian town of Wirrawee. They plan an outback camping trip during the Australian Day holidays and invite a few of their classmates; Corrie's boyfriend Kevin Holmes (Lincoln Lewis),Ellie's neighbor Homer Yannos (Deniz Akdeniz),townie Fiona Maxwell (Phoebe Tonkin),preacher's daughter Robyn Mathers (Ashleigh Cummings),and Lee Takkam (Chris Pang). The group witnesses several military planes flying overhead. They return home to find an invasion by an unnamed Asian force. Most of the town has been rounded up. The nearby bridge is a key access to a port captured by the enemy. The group struggles to survive and fight back.

The plot is basically Red Dawn. The kids especially the girls are all YA pretty. There is some YA romancing. The action is better than bad. It has good real and good CGI but not good realism. While there is action, the tension is never high. This is derivative. It doesn't have the guts to name the invaders. Caitlin Stasey has good screen presence. The acting is generally good enough but the material is not that great. There isn't anything great or that original to recommend here.