Get “The Notebook” Movie
Directed by Nick Cassavetes, this adaptation of author Nicholas Sparks’ bestselling novel revolves around Noah Calhoun’s (James Garner) regular visits to a female patron (Gena Rowlands) of an area nursing home. Rather than bore her with the inanities of everyday life, Calhoun reads from an old, faded notebook containing the sweeping account of a young couple (Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams) whose love affair was tragically put to a halt after their separation in the midst of World War II. Seven years later, the couple was reunited, and, despite having taken radically different paths, they found themselves unable to resist the call of a second chance. The Notebook also features Joan Allen, Sam Shepard, and Kevin Connolly.
What’s strange is that what the movie does focus on — a 1940 summertime romance that turns into the love of the summer lovers’ lives — feels less like a developed story than a succession of montages. Here are Noah (Ryan Gosling) and Allie (Rachel McAdams) laughing over an ice-cream cone. Here they are laughing on the beach. Here they are laughing as they use a rope to swing Tarzan-style into the old swimmin’ hole. And — presumably after they tire of all this activity — here they are just laughing.