The Notebook

Reviewed by John Gibbon

     I remember years ago, after finishing Nicholas Sparks’ 1996 tear-jerking debut bestseller, wishing I could write the script for the movie. The wannabe filmmaker inside began casting the project, trying to figure who would star. Costner would be too old for the male lead, and Leo was considered too cute for his own good thanks to that low-budget shipwreck film. Finding a female lead was proving to be even harder, so I tucked away the idea for some years. I felt pangs of jealousy when I got the surprise that The Notebook was heading to the big screen, mentally anguished at not being the one to oversee the project. Could the producers of the film deliver a product as good as the film shot in my mind’s eye.

     This smart story within a story plays out very well as a loveable old-timer (James Garner) reads a familiar story from a years-worn notebook to an ailing nursing home resident (Gena Rowlands). The story contained in the book revolves around a young couple, Noah and Allie, in Seabrook, North Carolina during the early 1940’s. These two are simply made for each other. Noah (Ryan Gosling) is a handsome yet sensitive lumberyard worker who already knows how to make a good living. But he’s also the sly relaxed kind of guy unafraid of taking a risk if it proves a point. His little stunt at an amusement park to win a date and the invitation to lie down in an empty street to watch the sky are worthy examples here. Allie (Rachel McAdams) is a sweet, beautiful little rich city girl with all the young pinup girl qualifications. She affects a perky air, smiling often and skipping along. She also carries a devil-may-care attitude, a girl who also can’t help but be a chatterbox when caught in the throes of a sexual encounter. Alas, no one, not even these two lovebirds, could’ve predicted such a wonderfully hot summer romance. Their love is a genuine young love, the walking-on-a-cloud kind, filled with enough passion, tenderness and adoration to make them swoon and gush over each other.

     Despite all that is right in their world, not all is good. Allie’s Mom (Joan Allen) has got her bloomers in a twist, fearing that young Noah’s fingerprints could smudge Mom’s perfect picture of her favorite lil’ debutante. Secondly, Allie is due to go to college in New York in the autumn. Naturally, as most poor boy-rich girl relationships go, the couple’s hearts are torn asunder. She soon goes to school, out of his reach; he fulfills his duty to serve in the Second World War. What will become of their love that lit up so many summer nights one time back when?

     Years pass and times change. Allie, who’s now sporting a dashing fiancé (James Marsden) at her side, has moved on. But Noah, although he has fulfilled an old promise, has not changed so much. Then one day Noah’s face graces a local newspaper and Allie goes out on a little excursion to Seabrook much to the chagrin of her mother and fiancé. Of course, after certain events, Allie must make a choice between first love and marriage.

     Accordingly, as the movie switches between past and present, Garner keeps Rowlands and the audience in dire suspense, never quite giving in on how the story will end, until the last moments. But if you search your heart of hearts, you have an idea.

     The chemistry formula was right in choosing Gosling and McAdams for the sentimental love-story. Gosling and McAdams exude a delicious innocence with equal parts charm and equal parts mushy goodness that easily marks them as a true onscreen couple. Gosling is amusingly fresh and wears a first-class Dean/McQueen persona. But what I still can’t get over is how damn convincing McAdams is, bristling with zest and pitch-perfect confidence in her performance. She certainly can’t be the same girl who portrayed the cruel drama queen from Mean Girls? In short, both are just great and could be headed for good things in their Hollywood futures. All others in the cast are very likable as well. Weathered vets Garner and Rowlands are adorable together, credibly radiating each emotion they share in true Hollywood form without any trace of corniness. Likewise, Sam Shepard is very likeable in the role of Noah’s amiable dad, and David Thorton equally so as Allie’s amused, handlebar-mustached father.

     The movie is held together well by a tender script and brilliant acting and it does have some slower moments but those moments punctuate the reality of love in this modern day. Director Nick Cassevetes keeps everything light and dreamy, never with over-the-top sappiness but with romance galore and some very humorous touches for more intense storytelling. Furthermore, I was wowed by the impressive cinematography as it not only stuns the eyes but goes beyond the heart as well, painting a picture that aims right at the romantic soul.

     Admittedly I wept like a baby who just spilled his milk bottle and it wasn’t because someone beat to the punch to get this story on screen. And, I confess, I couldn’t have done this story any better.  I’ll just warn you, be prepared for plenty of Kleenex, as I can almost guarantee that after watching this movie there will not be a dry eye in the house. It’s simply not just a movie for the gals because yes, even the strongest of manly men will be reduced to a sobbing, body-shaking mess. Quite honestly, The Notebook is one the best heart warming romantic films of the past decade, a touching true love story for anyone who believes romance still exists.