The Lost and Found Love

            If you’re too much of a cynic, don’t watch the movie because for sure you will roll your eyes and will probably say,  “this film is too good to be true”. But there’s only one way to find out if you’re   cynical or romantic at heart. Watch the movie and let’s see if you’re too cynical or too romantic.

The Notebook is definitely a film for romantic at heart. One critic says that “ it knows when to pull your hear strings and flutter you with saccharine”. Basically, the movie is about falling in love, losing your love one, and expecting and believing in miracles that someday you’ll have her/him back. It is based from the novel written by Nicholas Sparks who is also the author of the best selling novels A Walk To Remember and Message in a Bottle.

The movie is a story within a story. The movie would bring us to the present and to the past. Director Nick Casavettes bring us scenes that would shift from the past and back to the present. The story is told through a flashback. An old man named Duke (James Garner), a resident in a lakeside nursing home has a ritual of reading a love story from a notebook to an old woman ( Gena Rowlands) who suffers from Alzheimer’s disease. The story that Duke reads to that old woman is a real love story of a young couple. As he reads the story, the scene would bring us back to 1940s in a small town at North Carolina.  The story is about a passionate summer love affair of young Noah Calhoun (Ryan Gosling) and young Allie Hamilton (Rachel McAdams). Noah, a 19 year old man falls in love with a Allie who belongs to a high class family. The couple spends the summer together. Everything is fine until the mean-spirited mother of Allie, Mrs. Hamilton (Joan Allen) comes into the picture. Unfortunately, Allie’s class -conscious mother doesn’t like Noah because for her, Noah is trash, he is poor and he doesn’t deserve Allie. Before the summer ends, Allie and Noah end their relationship. Allie has no choice but to back to her hometown. Their break up is both not easy for them. Noah writes her a letter for 365 days but Allies’ mother keeps all the letters.

Time moves fast. Allie is now engaged to Lon Hammond, a lawyer. While preparing for her wedding she sees Noah’s picture in a newspaper. Because of that, she never loses the chance to see Noah after seven years. Meeting Noah again brings confusion to her feelings. She’s soon to be married with Lon but she’s now confused. When she’s with Noah, she remembers her free-spirited self but when she’s with Lon she’s different. She has to choose between Noah and Lon.

            The movie would bring the viewers again back to the scene where old Duke is sitting beside the old woman.  Duke still continues reading her the story. The old woman would ask him if Allie chooses the right man. Duke closes the notebook and says that the story ends. But a miracle happens. The old woman remembers that it is their first love and she’s Allie. Duke is the old Noah. This revelation would be surprising if the viewers haven’t read the novel.

Director Nick Casavettes film is truly unfaithful to the novel. I’ve read the novel thrice and I have already memorized the characters including Noah’s dog Clem. In the movie, I haven’t seen any dog. Thus, not everything in the novel is shown in the movie. At first, I did not enjoy the movie because, I always asked myself or my friend “Was it there in the novel?”   I realized that it would be better if  I completely disregard the novel when watching the film. In the movie, the conflict is clearly shown while in the novel I notice the subtlety of the conflict. 

            As I mentioned earlier, I’ve read the novel for three times and now I’m glad to see that the characters I keep in mind is now alive. Thanks to the actors and actresses who give life to the movie. Rachel McAdams as Allie does a terrific performance because she is able to portray young Allie as carefree and very energetic girl. I couldn’t believe that she’s the one who played the queen of the meanest girl in The Mean Girls with Lindsay Lohan. Ryan Gosling is also adorable. His portrayal of young Noah would make all the girls fall in love with his character. At first, I always complain why him, but as the movie goes on I learn to love his character. The viewers would really fall in love with Gosling and McAdams because they have done a wonderful job. I could really see the beautiful chemistry between them. I shouldn’t forget to mention the performance of James Garner. I don’t remember myself crying over a movie inside a movie house because for me it’s humiliating (that’s for myself only) but when James Garner, as old Noah cries upon seeing her wife Allie pushing him away and tells him that she doesn’t know him. I couldn’t help my tears from falling.

            Another thing that I like in the movie is that I can’t also help but admire and appreciate the beautiful views/scenes. The beautiful flock of swans in the river for example, would drive the viewers to dream about the ideal place to spend with their love ones.