Film Review: The Longest Ride

A Nicholas Sparks adaptation done right, with all the flaws and annoyances of a Nicholas Sparks adaptation.

A city girl. A cowboy. Country love ensues.
A city girl. A cowboy. Country love ensues.

The newest adaptation of a sappy romantic Nicholas Sparks novel, The Longest Ride, is exactly that — sappy and romantic, and formulaic with a preposterous twist added in for preposterous effect. The story about a young beautiful art lover (Britt Robertson, Dan in Real Life) who falls in love with a young beautiful bull rider (Scott Eastwood, Fury) is the surface romance, featuring lines like “I can’t just quit. It’s all I know”, etc. The more dramatic underlying romance is the story told by an injured old man (Alan Alda, M.A.S.H.), about his courtship and marriage to the love of his life (Oona Chaplin, Game of Thrones) and the sacrifices they made for each other. Combine the two together in a layered emotional cheese fest and you have the makings of a classic Sparks story which the movie studio can use to excitedly make a film trailer that states “Two Stories Separated by Time / Connected by Fate.” (see trailer below)

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Film Review: The Best of Me

The Best of Me offers the near-worst in its genre.

Eye candy, yes.  Chemistry, no.  James Marsden look-alike, absolutely not.
Eye candy, yes. Chemistry, no. James Marsden look-alike, absolutely not.

Take a close look at the picture above.  Does Mr. Shirtless look anything like a high school version of James Marsden?  If you answered ‘yes’, then this movie is absolutely the movie for you.  If you answered ‘no’, then you’re completely normal and will understand what I say when I say that the part of young Dawson was completely miscast.  This was the biggest failure of The Best of Me, but there were other failures as well, including a overly complicated third act.  Based on the book by Nicholas Sparks (The Notebook, A Walk to Remember), The Best of Me is obviously catering to the same audiences that have contributed a whopping ton of money to previous Sparks adaptations.  But this movie fails as an inspiring story and fails to provide compelling characters.  I haven’t read the book so I can’t say for sure whether or not it was the source material’s fault.  But either way, its unpredictability and distractions ruin the chance for emotional connectivity.

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Film Review: Safe Haven

Josh Duhamel and Julianne Hough frolic in SAFE HAVEN
Josh Duhamel and Julianne Hough frolic in SAFE HAVEN

starring: Julianne Hough, Josh Duhamel, David Lyons, Cobie Smulders

screenplay: Leslie Bohem and Dana Stevens

directed by: Lasse Hallström

MPAA: Rated PG-13 for thematic material involving threatening behavior, and for violence and sexuality.

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Film Review: “The Lucky One”

Taylor Schilling and Zac Efron in THE LUCKY ONE

starring: Zac Efron, Taylor Schilling, Blythe Danner, Riley Thomas Stewart, Jay R. Ferguson

screenplay by: Will Fetters

directed by: Scott Hicks

MPAA: Rated PG-13 for some sexuality and violence

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