The most surprising aspect of this movie may be that it is not based on a young adult novel. Gardner Elliot (Asa Butterfield) was born on Mars. Having lived his entire life on the red planet, Gardner’s only dream is to go to Earth, especially after virtually meeting a pretty foster child named Tulsa (Britt Robertson). 

However, the man in charge of the Mars settlement, Nathaniel Shepherd (Gary Oldman), is wary of what might physically happen to Gardner in Earth’s vastly different environment, especially the stronger gravity. When NASA decides it is time to bring Gardner home, the teenager finds Tulsa and enlists her in his mission to find his dad. (His astronaut mother died during childbirth.) 

Think of this science-fiction romance as The Fault in Our Starman. While on the road, a young man from another world falls in tragic love. The hordes of teens that devour every hot new YA read would probably enjoy this sci-fi-rom, had they a book to read first. Anyone familiar with this type of story will not have any problem guessing where this narrative is headed. But no one goes to a sweet tale of tragic teen love for unpredictability.