Movie Review: Dear John

Like so many others, I have been bombarded by Dear John previews for the past few months. And like so many others, they captured me. Somehow, the previews made me catch my breath and filled me with more emotion than had most other previews.
So, when I was bed-ridden after having my wisdom teeth removed, I decided to read the book. I simply could not wait for the movie. It was fantastic--not what I expected, but fantastic nonetheless.
Now, I could sit here and list every place the movie differed from the book, but I feel like that is a given. Almost every movie created from a book is not a carbon copy of the book. While Dear John kept the overall story (besides the ending, which left many unsatisfied), there were so many parts that I missed from the book. There were also many detail changes that had no purpose--it was like they were trying to make it different from the book.
However, while this is frustrating, the book should have nothing to do with the movie. I am only comparing them to warn those who have read the book to expect something different and to tell those who are thinking about reading the book that they should probably wait until they have seen the movie.
The actual movie was truthfully rather decent. (Once again, I probably would have liked it better had I not read the book), there were parts that made me wanting more.
The beginning, when the two young lovers John Tyree (Channing Tatum) and Savannah Curtis (Amanda Seyfried) first meet and fall in love, feels a bit rushed. In the movie, it is a short period of time (only two weeks), but it felt even shorter than that. While they had some cute moments together, especially in the musical montages, the foundation for the deep love that they supposedly share was missing.
I wondered what made Savannah so different from the other girls John had met. And I wondered what made John worth staying with while he went back to finish his tour of duty in Germany. However, when he finally did leave and their two-week courtship was over, I somehow believed they did love each other. I was not sure why they did, but I did feel that. It was just the foundation that was missing.
Tatum and Seyfried did a great job with the nonverbal material and I think this is partially why their romance was so believable. Except when it came to the main story and the actual dialogue, I had some issues with Seyfried.
I came into this movie looking for Seyfried to finally prove that she had serious acting chops. I loved her in Mean Girls and thought she brought it up a little as the lead in Mamma Mia!. I was expecting Dear John to be the next big step for her.
Unfortunately, the role may have been too much for her. The odd thing was, she did a good, perhaps great, job with the two or three “big” scenes that she had. It was the small parts that seemed unnatural. Her dialogue was awkward at times and in parts, like she was simply reading off a script instead of being Savannah Curtis.
I expected the opposite of Tatum. I did not dislike him as much as some, but I thought that he would simply do a decent enough job of making it believable. Here, I was wrong and very glad about that.
Tatum was the focal point of the movie and did a fantastic job in every scene. Some may criticize his performance as mostly one-dimensional and expressionless, but those that do are missing the point. That is John’s character. He is different from ordinary guys. He has a hard time relating to many people and is uneasy around others most of the time. Tatum portrays this part of John excellently. When it does come time for Tatum to show some new emotion, whether it be smiling at something Savannah said or tearfully reading a letter (viewers will most likely cry or feel emotional at this part too, but I cannot give too much away), he does so effortlessly.
After the rushed beginning, the rest flows better. The movie has a run time of 105 minutes, which is great for a romantic comedy, but is perhaps a bit too short for a drama like Dear John. It would have been better if director Lasse Hallström had lengthened the movie and used this time to build upon certain aspects of the story better.
One nice aspect of this movie was when Savannah and John learned about the September 11 terrorist attacks. It was subtle and I appreciated that they did not try to force the devastation. The attacks were a catalyst in the movie, not the main plot line, and therefore did not need to be overdone.
Dear John made me smile and chuckle. It also made me tear-up and gave me chills (the September 11 scenes in particular). It should have made me grin and sob, but It simply lacked the foundation to do so.
Despite this, it was still an incredible movie. Go to the theater and watch it or rent it when it comes out on DVD. It is a good movie to watch because it portrays relationships realistically and teaches that life does not always happen as expected.