Testament of Youth isn’t totally unique. Plenty of period dramas, even those that are true to life, have a similar approach of capturing the loveliness of a teenage summer vacation to better juxtapose the ugliness of war and how terrible it is to put young adults through it at a time when they should be exploring their lives. But it’s not terribly made– the film gets better as it goes, Max Richter’s excellent score is captivating, and there’s a certain novelty of watching the fresh faces of some of Britain’s biggest actors, even if their better known works have eclipsed this film. Testament of Youth may not be as devastating as war films like Atonement, but it’s a fairly decent watch, if you’re specifically craving for a period drama you haven’t watched before.

The cast is great, really, the leads are big names for a reason. But there’s just something about Kit Harington and Alicia Vikander’s chemistry that just doesn’t have that indefinable, irresistible spark. Part of this could be due to their eventual fates, and to the film wanting to focus on Vita Brittain entirely, but their dynamic just feels much less passionate than it could have been.