The Notebook

Hubby and I went to see "The Notebook" last night. We weren't able to catch the matinee, but even yet, the $18.50 that we paid covered not only our tix, but a hot dog, nachos, and small popcorn. Dayamn.

I'm a HUGE fan of author Nicholas Sparks. In fact, he is the only author whose entire collection I have thus far. His other novels that became movies that some may be familiar with are "Message in a Bottle" with Kevin Costner and Robin Wright Penn, and "A Walk to Remember" with singer Mandy Moore and Shane West. His style of writing is amazingly honest and it inspires me to write. As with any other book that I read, I can't help but immerse myself into the story. Sparks' novels have a way of drawing you in. His stories are so captivating because they all focus on timeless tales of true love. If you haven't read any of Nicholas Sparks books, it's not the fairytale love stories that always end with a happily ever after. These will pull at the heartstrings one minute, make you laugh another, and still make you sob uncontrollably another. If you're ever in need of a good ass cry, Sparks is the man.

As with any novel that lends itself to being made into a movie, there is always the debate of which is better- the movie or the book. 9 out of 10 times, the book is better. OR, it can also depend if one watched the movie PRIOR to reading the book. Either way, some will defend one or the other. I suppose I can understand the film makers' right to exercise artistic interpretation (as in "Harry Potter and the Prisoner or Azkaban"), but in this case, I felt that the movie should've mirrored the book more closely.

"The Notebook" is one of my favorite books that I can honestly say that I've read almost ten times. The movie was good, too. It made me cry, but then again, when don't I NOT cry at movies? I have to say that I was a tad disappointed. There were so many parts of the book that I felt should've been included. To shorten the movie, I'm assuming, the sequence of events were all jumbled. Then, there was an entirely new character added to the storyline! I've "seen" the movie again and again in my mind and I have a clear picture of what the characters look like, how they react in situations, and how the setting played a major part. Actors Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams looked great onscreen together and their interpretation of their characters was pretty good. James Garner and Gena Rowlands were good, too, but in the book, they're supposed to be very much older than they were in the film. There were so many details that were left out that really make the book much better than the movie. According to the amount of kleenex I used and the sniffling noises I heard around me in the theater, the film still drove its point of true love and miracles through. It's still a "crying movie" and if you ever get a chance to read "The Notebook," do so. (Just don't forget the box of tissue!)