Nickolas Sparks and Nick Cassavetes’ “The Notebook,” starring Ryan Gosling (Noah) and Rachel McAdams (Allie) is the best romance movie I’ve ever seen and probably ever will see.
The main plot comes in the form of flashbacks set in the 1930s and ’40s where a daring boy named Noah does everything he can to win over the girl he can’t stop thinking about, Allie. At first, she plays hard to get, but after Noah’s relentless effort, she gives in and finds she can’t get enough of him either. The pair fall as madly in love as two teenagers can get. After spending the summer growing in love and sharing every moment, Allie is ripped away by her rich family to live in another city. Her parents never liked Noah much, especially her mother. See, they look down on him because he isn’t rich like them. The couple, once inseparable, are essentially forced into an argument and break up in a nasty fight. It isn’t over yet though, Noah writes a letter to Allie every day for a year, but the letters are intercepted by Allie’s overbearing mother. Years go by and Allie gets engaged to a wealthy war hero while Noah single-handedly builds Allie her dream home. Seeing an article in the paper highlighting Noah’s hard work to build the beautiful home, Allie knows she has to go back.
The flashbacks I mentioned in the paragraph above depict the story’s main plot, which would make a good movie on its own, but in addition, smaller, more important present events take place. I won’t say too much other than an elderly Noah (played by James Garner) and a now senile Allie (played by Gena Rowlands) live in their dream home accompanied by aids and nurses. The scenes depict the couple in their old age where the true emotion and meaning of the film lie.
Someone must talk about the visuals of this movie, that someone is me and I am here to tell you they are gorgeous. While there aren’t a whole lot of unique camera angles, the general composition and lighting make up for this. The camera work delivers without lacking in any fashion. The film is also cast and written wonderfully: it’s full of iconic scenes. My favorite performance came from James Garner playing elderly Noah. He gave an unforgettable realism and distinction to the character that immensely amplified the emotional impact. The last half of the movie mostly takes place in the old Allie and Noah era. Both give a wonderful performance. It’s so refreshing for me to see drama and emotion acted out by older actors, not young perfect-looking model movie stars. It made the performance all the more heartwarming and heartbreaking.
Based on my experience and the agreeable PG-13 rating, I think anyone mature enough to be exposed to some mild sexual content can and should watch “The Notebook.” I think the best way to describe the film is, as I said before, heartwarming and heartbreaking. It so realistically and uniquely explores the concept of “true love,” showing both its wonderful and hard-to-swallow elements.
I recommend watching “The Notebook” with a significant other if you’ve got one, as you’ll need a shoulder to cry into. So if you’re ready to feel something, absolutely watch “The Notebook.”
Rating: 4/5 stars
