Movies based on books: Dear John

I've noticed that lately, there are so many movies coming out that are based on books. So I decided that I will occasionally write a post featuring a book-turned-movie and write what I thought about it. My big complaint about movies that are based on books is that the directors/producers of the films often take too many liberties with the text. Also, some books just can't be effectively translated onto the big screen.

Recently, I saw "Dear John". There was a lot of hype and press surrounding this movie and like so many others out there (mostly female) I was sucked in. With movies, usually my feeling is... I'd like to see that movie when it comes out on DVD. With this movie I had to see it the night it came out!! Obviously their advertising strategies weren't lost on me.

The movie is, of course, based on a book by the same name, written by Nicholas Sparks, master of the plot-twist driven, tear jerker romance novel. I've been a reader of Nicholas Sparks since I was in high school. Note that I said reader, not fan. As a 16-year-old high school student, I'm sure I thought he was one of the greatest American writers. Now that I am 10 years older and wiser, I can recognize that his writing is not up to par with that of Dickens, Fitzgerald, or Salinger. But he sure does know how to tell a captivating, sometimes heart-wrenching love story. Quite a few of Sparks' novels have been converted into films, including: The Notebook, A Walk to Remember, Message in a Bottle, and Nights in Rodanthe. 

"Dear John", both the book and the movie, center around "good girl" Savannah and "bad boy" John, who fall in love despite their differences. This is a pretty common formula for Sparks. Savannah and John fall in love during a week spent on the Carolina shore; Savannah is there doing habitat for humanity, while John is home on leave from the military and staying with his anti-social father. Soon, Savannah goes back to college while John returns overseas to fulfill his obligations for the army. Savannah and John write letters and their relationship flourishes. Just when John's enlistment is about to end and he and Savannah can begin their lives together, September 11 happens. John and his whole unit decide to reenlist. This creates a strain in their relationship, and, as the title suggests, John receives a "Dear John" letter. Then, in classic Nicholas Sparks fashion, a bunch of dramatic plot twists and tear filled moments ensue.

To be honest, I didn't remember much of this book when I went to see the movie. I had read it back when it first came out (maybe '05 or '06) and didn't want to refresh my memory about the plot because I didn't want to spoil the movie. As I watched, more and more of the book came back to me, so I was able to prepare myself for some of the movie's myriad sad moments.

Ultimately, I thought the movie was okay. It followed the book pretty closely (from what I remember of the book, that is). After seeing the movie I did re-read the ending and discovered that the book ends differently than the movie. (It's a pretty big difference, but I won't reveal it for fear of spoiling the movie for those planning to see it).

A few comments about "Dear John":
- I thought the actors who played John and Savannah (Channing Tatum and Amanda Seyfried) were well cast. Tatum plays a great tough guy and Seyfried is the ultimate innocent, sweet girl. However, together I didn't think they had very good chemistry. They didn't show a lot of passion on screen, and their love for each other wasn't very believable.

- By far the best actor was Richard Jenkins, who plays John's father. In the movie, Savannah, who has an autistic family friend, tells John that she believes his anti-social, eccentric father might be autistic (for the record, this is executed much better in the book than it is in the movie). The dad is really convincing and you really feel for him. I think Tatum and Jenkins do a good job playing father and son.

- The transitions between scenes in this movie is really weird and kind of uncomfortable. The transitions are kind of rough and choppy, which makes the movie come off as kind of amateurish.

Overall, it's a good date movie and both the book and movie are good for a nice, cathartic crying session. I also like that he integrated both autism and 9/11 to incorporate some current topics.

- Emily