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The newest film adaptation from a Nicholas Sparks novel is scoring big at the box office, and people pour into the theatres to watch Dear John. Starring Channing Tatum (Fighting, Step Up) and Amanda Seyfreid, (Mamma Mia, Mean Girls) the movie follows the supposedly epic love story of John and Savannah across continents and through the years. |
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Savannah is spending her Spring Break in a beach town in South Carolina where she meets John. John is in the Army Special Forces and is in town visiting his father while he is on leave. They meet after Savannah’s purse falls off the dock, and John courageously leaps into the water to rescue it. They spend the remainder of John’s leave together and promise to write each other letters all the time for the rest of John’s tour of duty.
It may sound potentially romantic, but neither of these lead actors can carry this story. It becomes impossible to even believe that they are in a relationship with each other. Two weeks full of cuddling on the beach and eating together doesn’t have the power to convey a long-lasting powerful relationship. Then, after John is back at work in some mystery country, it’s impossible to believe that their “love” has carried over to a meaningful relationship. Sure, they exchange letters full of lovey phrases, but that’s not enough for me.
Dear John tries to pull at your heart strings even more but setting the movie in the fall of 2001. John is in Germany, or Africa, or Lebanon or wherever when he sees airplanes flying into the World Trade Center. So, he feels obligated to extend his tour of duty and continue to fight the evil in the world. While a very noble cause, it doesn’t fit the personality that John has. All he wants to do is get home and spend time with Savannah – he’s a one goal sort of guy. He decides to extend his tour right after the attack. On or about September 12th, his whole troop gets a weekend leave. The rest of the guys head to Paris, but John somehow finds a military flight headed right to South Carolina. He goes home to talk to Savannah, who is also back at her parents’ beach house while she should be in school. John arrives back in the country to a busy commercial airport. Impossible. He spends approximately 15 hours with Savannah crying about how he didn’t know what to do and whether or not to extend his duty, and crying more. She says she can’t handle many more months apart. He flies back to his mystery country and requests an extension of his tour, and problems start brewing in the relationship.
This movie is a boring love story with a dull plot. The original script tested so poorly with audiences that three weeks before the movie’s release they reshot the last scene to at least let people leave the theatre with some hope, and possibly a smile. Poor acting, poor writing, and a boring story about love. 1 out of 5 stars. Don’t waste your time. |
