From romance novel to romantic movie: “Dear John” delivers the spark

Whether it’s Channing Tatum’s Greek statue body or Amanda Seyfried’s innocent doe eyes, something in “Dear John” is bound to spark that romantic urges within its viewers.

Based on a bestselling novel by Nicholas Sparks, “Dear John” explores a spring fling between John (Tatum), a young soldier at home on temporary leave, and Savannah (Seyfried), an idealistic college girl at her beach house during spring break. Their encounter soon blossoms into true love.

As two weeks of spring break comes to an end, the two lovebirds fly to their respective “home”: John to his deployment and Savannah to her school. Throughout years of separation, they manage to stay in touch by exchanging a continuous stream of love letters. Their relationship, however, is jeopardized by other unforeseen factors, including the 9/11 terrorist attacks that force John to extend his deployment.

Swedish director Lasse Hallström and screenwriter Jamie Linden collaborate to adapt Sparks’ novel into big screen. Those who haven’t read the novel, however, shouldn’t be worried; the plot is pretty straightforward. After all, this is a romance movie, not some complicated fantasies with dragons, wands and a character named He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.

“Dear John,” rated PG-13 for some sensuality and violence, follows a typical plot of Sparks’ other romance novels (“The Notebook,” “A Walk to Remember,” etc.), in which two lovers are separated due to uncontrollable circumstances and then happily reunite and rekindle their true, everlasting love. But unlike Sparks’ other works, neither of the main characters dies at the end; instead, other significant individuals in their immediate family meet the gloomy fate.

Despite this major difference, “Dear John” is extremely reminiscent of “The Notebook.” There is the same kissing scene in the rain that will melt every teenage girl’s heart and the same goodbye scene that will bring the entire theater to a giant weeping session. Even more, Seyfried’s “Mean Girls” co-star, Rachel McAdams, play the other “Sparks’ girl” in “The Notebook.” Deja vu?

One of the most glaring pitfalls of the movie was its transition, or the lack thereof. Furthermore, “Dear John” delves into too many subplots—ranging from wars in Afghanistan and Iraq to autism and stroke to coin collection to, of course, romance—that could potentially confuse the viewers. But most movies adapted from novels encounter similar situations. After all, it’s not easy to cram approximately 300 pages of words into a 105-minute movie.

Despite these fallbacks, both the attractive main characters and the heartwarming plot make “Dear John” a movie to watch. Just be sure to have some Kleenex nearby.