The Notebook remains at the top of the world’s most romantic films list.
We all remember this Rachel McAdams and Ryan Gosling starrer for its ultimate ode to love and commitment between two humans – to die together. Now, now. I did not give away too much of the plot, did I?
So who dies at the end of The Notebook? Does anybody die at all? Read on to find out.
List of Characters Who Die in The Notebook
- Allie
- Noah
How does Allie die in The Notebook?
Allie dies at the end of The Notebook at the nursing home she is admitted to after being diagnosed with dementia. In the days leading to her death, Allie is not allowed her regular storytelling session with Noah.
In their last session, Allie gets sick and is put into an isolation ward. A few days later, Noah slips into her isolation ward to see her.
She miraculously remembers him in that moment. They spend the night together and are found dead in the same bed next morning.
Noah’s Death in The Notebook
Noah also dies at the end of The Notebook. In fact, Noah and Allie die on the same night. After their last storytelling session when Allie gets very sick, Noah suffers a cardiac arrest and is unable to see Allie ever since.
A few days later, when he gets better, he suddenly wakes up in the night to go in search of Allie, almost as if he knows he is about to die. Noah finds Allie in a private ward but is in for a surprise when she can remember him.
Allie says she was afraid Noah would never come back for her. To which Noah replies, “I will always come back for you.” They both then lie down together, arm in arm, and fall asleep. When the nurse finds them next morning, their bodies are cold.
For years, The Notebook made its audiences cry with that one final scene where Noah and Allie die in each other’s arms. That is why fans were in for a rude shock when their beloved romance came on Netflix but with a twist!
Who dies in Netflix’s Alternate Version of The Notebook?
In February 2019, Netflix UK made The Notebook available to stream on its platform. However, to the utter dismay of Notebook lovers, the film’s ending had been tweaked. Fans were baffled, and the internet broke with so many questions.
How could Netflix change the ending to a classic like ‘The Notebook’? Is that allowed? Why did Netflix change the ending? Will there be a sequel to The Notebook?
To put it simply, Netflix does not kill Allie and Noah in its version of The Notebook. This alternate ending does not have the scene where a nurse finds Noah and Allie dead in each other’s arms at the nursing home.
Instead, it ends with them lying in the hospital bed, holding hands, and very much alive. The next scene is of the birds flying over a lake, and the credits follow soon.
In Netflix’s defense, it had nothing to do with this alternate ending to The Notebook. Soon after the fan outcry over the movie’s most gut-wrenching scene getting cut in the Netflix version, the streaming giant clarified ‘alternate endings to films exist’.
Netflix claimed that it was sold this version of The Notebook and had nothing to do with the changes while rejecting any sequel rumors.
Many fans also believe this alternate ending was in line with the ending Nicholas Sparks gave in his novel. Sparks continued the story into a second novel in the series, Wedding.
It may be noted (for die-hard fans only) that according to Nicholas Sparks’ website, there is a special edition of The Notebook available from back in 2012. This edition features over 10 minutes of deleted scenes that were edited back into the film.
Who Dies in the Novel? Is It Different From the Film?
As mentioned above, the original novel, which was adapted into The Notebook film, is never clear about Allie and Noah’s death. Also, this is not the only thing that the film changes from the book’s script.
One of the most significant changes made in the film is the personality of Noah. In the book, Noah is not a creep who bullies and blackmails a girl into going out on a date with him.
Allie and Noah barely even fight, let alone get abusive with each other in public. Their relationship is shown maturing throughout the book. The moral of the story — Never underestimate Hollywood’s appetite for drama.
So in the novel version of The Notebook, no one dies in the end. Allie and Noah are merely basking in the notebook’s glory,which helps Allie, who is suffering from dementia, remember her own life story.
Allie remembers Noah, and for a brief moment, everything is alright with the world.
Did the Real Noah And Allie Also Die Together?
Is The Notebook based on a true story? Sorry to disappoint all the cynics out there, but yes, The Notebook is based on a real-life couple who inspired author Nicholas Sparks, whose novel was adapted to film.
Richard Trimmer and his wife Nancy, grandparents to Sparks’ ex-wife, were married for 61 years and died within hours of each other. Not unlike Noah and Allie, the Trimmers had a big family with six children, ten grandchildren, and 12 great-grandchildren.
Richard had been hospitalized while recovering from a fall when his children informed him of Nancy’s death in her sleep. A mere 12 hours later, Richard died in his sleep too. Richard had also been diagnosed with lung cancer, but he didn’t die first.
Sparks got to know of this fantastic real-life love story from his ex-wife, Cathy Sparks.
Cathy was inspired by her grandparents’ story so much that her anecdotes of their life excited Sparks’ curiosity. On his official website, Nicholas Sparks has even penned a story about this couple.
The Trimmers had met as teenagers in East Berlin, a southern suburb of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Richard worked as a truck driver while Cathy often joined him on the road.
“It’s just like he knew that something happened to her and he wanted to be with her. We really think that his determination to stay alive was for my mom and for us kids,” said the couple’s youngest daughter Missy Smith.
I have to admit. Hollywood does find its way to inspirational stories, even if it messes them up eventually!
About The Notebook
The Notebook is a 2004 American romantic drama film starring Rachel McAdams (Allie) and Ryan Gosling (Noah). It was based on the 1996 novel of the same name by Nicholas Sparks.
Rich girl Allie and mill worker Noah Calhoun fall in love during 1940s America. Their love story survives class differences, World War II, a separation of seven years, other relationships, and even dementia.
After Allie is diagnosed with the severely debilitating illness dementia, she tends to forget everything about Noah and their past.
But before the onset of her illness, she fills a notebook with their love story and asks Noah to recite the story to her whenever she forgets.
She makes a note of everything — how they meet at the summer fair and he asks her out on a Ferris wheel; their incandescent summer love and her angry parents; Whitman’s poetry and Chopin’s composition; the restored plantation house and the revived love for painting; the war; the 365 letters and seven years apart.
The Notebook remains one of America’s most famous romantic films. It is primarily known for its heartbreaking ending where Allie has dementia and can no longer Noah or their daring romance.
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