Movie Review: Thumbs Up! Thumbs Down!"A Walk to Remember"
Entertainment value: B
Tobacco content: Thumbs Up!
(Co-written by Jameson Liu)
A bittersweet love story, modified from the best-selling novel written by Nicholas Sparks on which it was based, stars pop singer-turned-actress Mandy Moore and teen heartthrob Shane West. Moore plays Jamie Sullivan, the only daughter of a small-town Baptist minister, played by Peter Coyote. Quiet and conservative, she is an outcast at her local high school. West plays Landon Carter, a troubled son who lives with his mother (Daryl Hannah). Although he is a high school senior, he is a pessimistic troublemaker, who has no direction in his life.
Landon's attitude changes, though, when he is involved in setting up a prank that results in a hospitalized student. For consequence, the high school principal makes Landon participate in the Christmas pageant and tutor an elementary student. It is here where he acquaints himself with Jamie for help, but she makes him promise one thing: he cannot fall in love with her. Landon breaks the promise, of course, and love blossoms between the two characters. Later, a horrible secret is revealed that puts Landon in the position of helping fulfill Jamie's life goals.
Moore's performance was surprisingly impressive, compared to those of other pop stars, such as Britney Spears ("Crossroads") and Mariah Carey ("Glitter"). She was able to pull off playing a conservative, polite teenage girl without presenting herself as too cheesy or fake. And like her acting, her songs are equally outstanding, including "Cry", "Someday We'll Know", and "Only Hope".
Unsurprisingly, the movie was highly different from the book, for Hollywood always has its own way of changing great reading material into something that is appealing to a mass movie audience. For instance, both are set in Beaufort, North Carolina, but the book's plot takes place during the winter, in the 1950's; a modern-day, springtime setting was made for the movie. There are many more modifications made in the plot line, but too much revealed would give away most of the story. There are also some scenes in the book that were not included in the movie, such as a prom dance and an orphanage scene.
Most significantly, the film does an excellent job of emphasizing faith, friendship, love, and religion, rather than the sex and drugs found in other popular teen flicks. In fact, tobacco use was not present at all. Although the plot line was altered a little, "A Walk to Remember" is still a story to remember - just like the book.
