A Walk to Remember is your typical teenage love story. It comes across as sweet and seemingly sincere while telling the story of a romance between two 18-year-olds starting to find their footholds in life.
Directed by Adam Shankman and based on Nicholas Sparks’ best-selling novel, A Walk to Remember proves that a film about goodness is not the same thing as a good film. If only I’d known earlier.
A Walk to Remember is rated PG (Parental guidance suggested) for its male character’s ample use of beer and profanity. It is said to have a 100 minute run time. However, it feels more like an eternity.
1. Quick Review
A Walk To Remember starts off as a typical good-girl meets bad-boy tale. Jamie Sullivan is the class geek, and Landon Carter is the cherry on the school sundae. She is a devout Catholic, he is a ruffian in his ways.
When Landon is caught trespassing and inebriated, he is sentenced to take part in the school’s play. He asks Jamie to help him out. She does, and soon, their friendship morphs into something more.
They finally declare their love for each other when Jamie drops the bomb; she’s sick and dying. Could their love withstand death her looming death?
2. Is it worth watching?
Based on the book by Nicholas Sparks, A Walk to Remember is definitely not what its title implies. The film bases its story on the tired trope of a chaste Christian girl correcting the school ruffian with her gentle waves of purity.
Some people may regard it as a refreshingly new perspective amidst the brazenness of modern love. I, for one, find it to be a tad too vanilla. The plot strings its cis straight white characters along. They are met with ridiculously predictable obstacles to keep their relationship going.
What starts out as a formulaic high school love story abruptly changes into a weird supposed tear-jerker. Characters are poorly developed, subplots are wrapped up in fast and unconvincing ways, and the entire production feels rushed and preachy.
At the end, the director really tries to milk tears out of the audience with her terminal illness. It all just makes the whole film reek of nauseatingly oversweet tea.
I. Plot
Jamie Sullivan (played by Mandy Moore) is a devout Christian. She is made fun of by her classmates for being a nerd and her knitted sweater-wearing ways. She likes astronomy, sings in the church choir, and is the perfect student.
Landon Carter (played by Shane West), is the founder of the school’s in-crowd. He’s shown to be cool because he drives a nice car. That’s it, that’s his whole character.
One day, Landon gets busted for trespassing and being drunk. His punishment is to participate in the school play. He goes to Jamie, the female lead, for help with his lines.
Landon doesn’t want to be seen with her in public. However, their secret friendship develops into something more. Soon Landon finds himself defending Jamie from the barbed attacks of his supposed friends.
When professing their love for one another, Jamie drops the bombshell; she’s terminally ill. By then, the camera had swooped heavenward enough times for the three people watching to have seen it coming a mile away. Cue sad music.
II. Music & Visuals
Mervyn Warren is the music director of this film. Warren is an American film composer, record producer, music conductor, lyricist, songwriter, and vocalist. He is a five-time Grammy Award winner and a 10-time Grammy Award nominee.
Every romantic film has a montage or two. A Walk To Remember gives us Someday We’ll Know, by Mandy Moore and Jonathan Foreman. While the lyrics pose very important questions, the video is of Landon and Jamie dancing awkwardly.
Other tracks of the film include Dancing In The Moonlight by Toploader, It’s Gonna Be Love by Mandy Moore, Only Hope by Switchfoot and Cry by Mandy Moore.
The film is filled with cheesy dance routines and corny ideas for dates. Their chaste love is not much more than hand-holding and kissing. However, that is enough for Jamie’s Reverend father (played by Peter Coyote) to deem un-Christian. Slut-shaming never gets old.
3. Final Thoughts
There’s nothing original about this film. Some of the familiar situations include the plain girl who lets loose her hair and turns out to be beautiful and film star’s disease in which the actress becomes more alluring as she gets sicker.
The direction, cinematography, and performances are barely adequate, but the Beaufort setting is picturesque. However, its cloying sweetness and tired tropes drags the film under, and it barely manages a couple of stirring moments.
At the end of this film, I’ve validated two things. That the book is always better than the movie, and that there’s nothing remotely memorable about this walk.
4. Grade
Story: F
Cinematography/Animation: C
Acting: C
Music: C
Direction: F
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