Jennifer D. (jennicat) from ST AUGUSTINE, FL Reviewed on 12/30/2014...
I really liked this movie. I was in love with Channing.
Jessica S. (Jessie2369) from BEAVER FALLS, PA Reviewed on 2/12/2014...
The movie was really good. It was almost like the book. There where a few things that where different. The ending was not what I was exempting.
1 of 1 member(s) found this review helpful.
Kirsten K. from MAPLE VALLEY, WA Reviewed on 11/29/2011...
Christopher Payne in previous reviews said it all. Being of the female persuasion, I can appreciate a good-looking man. But I'd much prefer one with wit, intelligence, and who appears to have a pulse. Channing Tatum brought nothing to the role. I was not persuaded by anything he did on screen to see him as a romantic lead worthy of capturing my interest, let alone any woman's heart.
2 of 2 member(s) found this review helpful.
Sharon C. (Sierrastar) from BLYTHEWOOD, SC Reviewed on 11/25/2011...
This was a movie that I am so glad that I had it on my wish list and finally after a long wait did get the chance to watch it. I enjoyed the movie and it was worth the wait.
Ellen D. from MASSAPEQUA, NY Reviewed on 3/21/2011...
Awesome movie!
0 of 1 member(s) found this review helpful.
Sheryl B. (Momof2boys) Reviewed on 7/13/2010...
Loved this movie--it really struck a nerve with me about the choices we make in life.
3 of 4 member(s) found this review helpful.
Andrea S. (asilvey) from ORLANDO, FL Reviewed on 6/7/2010...
Loved this one! The ending was unexpected but still ended on a positive note! The more I see of Channing Tatum and Amanda Seyfried the more I love them! This is a great movie that the whole family can watch together! Very heart warming!
4 of 4 member(s) found this review helpful.
Movie Reviews
Need to watch!
K. Littlefield | Oklahoma | 02/28/2010
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I've read all of Nicholas Sparks' books. Dear John was one of my favorites so when it came to the big screen I naturally wanted to see it. I was NOT disappointed. NO MOVIE will ever match the dynamics of the book. When you go into a movie with that knowledge, you can enjoy what the movie has to offer.
While this is no "The Notebook", Dear John is definitely worth seeing. I can't wait to buy it on DVD and I generally don't buy a lot of movies on DVD. Back to "The Notebook"....I'm not sure if any movie will ever be able to match the delight, heartbreak, and hope it offered but that's ok with me!
Watch Dear John...I don't think it will disappoint.
"
Amazing
Elizabeth T. Evans | North Carolina | 04/06/2010
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I saw the movie in theaters the weekend after it opened. I was extremely excited, it was something I had been waiting on for weeks. Some of my friends had told me they did not like it or it was not what they expected, even hearing that I was disappointed. About 30 minutes into the movie I started crying and it continued the remainder of the movie. Dear John, touched my heart in a way no movie has in a long time, I felt connected with the characters. I recommended this movie to all my friends and I recommend it to you too! It was everything I expected and more! :)"
Lacking any kind of Spark
Christopher C. Payne | CA | 03/30/2010
(3 out of 5 stars)
"OK, it was date night. What can I say? I had the kids, and along with my girlfriend, we were looking for a movie we could compromise on. "Dear John" fit the bill. I didn't have huge expectations but I admittedly did enjoy "The Notebook". It is sadly one of my favorite romantic comedies of all time. Yes, I enjoy romantic comedies. Get the jokes in now for all of you who are coming across this blog for the first time. I also have three daughters, so with them and my girlfriend living in the house, I am forced to see some romance once in a while or I would be watching nothing at all.
"Dear John" is (as you might infer) a movie about a young man in the military who finds his way home for a couple of weeks, falls in love and then gets dumped via the US postal service. He is a surfer dude, with a rock hard body and a quiet reserved demeanor. Channing Tatum plays the lead role and while I don't know too much about him, his acting was less than stellar. While all the women in the audience were watching with their mouths wide open and a little drool forming or their lips, he didn't do much more than grunt his way through his lines. I think he might want to stick to modeling. His acting was nothing more than a few guttural slurs that were almost indecipherable.
While he drags the movie down, Amanda Seyfried and Richard Jenkins did their best to elevate it to a lofty level. The army brat (Channing), who apparently had a violent past, finds love in Amanda's character and with Richard Jenkins doing an amazingly fantastic job as Channing's father; the three spend two weeks getting to know each other. Richard Jenkins is at his very best playing the father who suffers in silence from autism. One catches on quickly with the constant references to meatloaf every Saturday and Lasagna every Sunday, without fail.
As you might expect, John (Channing Tatum) heads back to his day job and Savannah (Amanda) heads back to school stretching their romance to thousands of miles. It starts out well with letters exchanging hands but eventually it gets too difficult for Savannah to handle. After the planes did their damage in New York City John decided to re-enlist for another stint and what was supposed to be a 12 month separation begins to stretch into years. There is a reason the movie is called "Dear John".
The movie is filled with several sad scenes, struggles with handling the autism aspect and injects "true love' into the mix. While it wasn't a bad movie it definitely was lacking something. In my opinion it would be extremely difficult having much of a connection with a man (Channing Tatum) who can't manage much more than looking good with his shirt off. Whoever was in charge of the cast should be slapped on the wrist. I change of actor in the lead male role would have done wonders with the chemistry.
Still, if you want a date movie this would be a fine one to pick. All of the women would overlook bad acting for a cut six pack and you do get to see plenty of Channing topless. Richard Jenkins deserves an Oscar nomination in my opinion for carrying so much of the emotional load of this movie as a supporting character. I did not realize he was so gifted, but I thoroughly enjoyed seeing him in this character.
Overall, not bad but could have been much better. It will have you crying, if you are a woman, or possibly and feminine male as I continue to be called from time to time. I didn't cry for the record so get off my back."
Dear John: The Missing Letter, the Movie Details
Jason | Backwater, Alabama | 04/16/2010
(2 out of 5 stars)
"Dear John,
I don't know how to tip-toe around this, so I'm going to come right out and say it: I'm a selfish whore.
Waiting around for you has been pure hell. So frustrating! OMG. You think YOU have it tough over there (wherever you are), living here in my parents' multimillion dollar plantation estate is agony you can't imagine. I mean, which of the eight rooms do I sleep in?! Ugh. And that's not even going into the summer house with a beach-front view. It's so depressing.
Anyway, remember Tim? Yeah, well, he needs me or something because he got sick and his son Alan is autistic. Sure, my parents could have donated tons of money, and I have more time than I know what to do with, but that's just not enough for Tim and his son. So, we're getting married, and that's why I haven't written in weeks. My bad. Talk about something that makes no sense at all! I'm morally bankrupt, so I clearly can't empathize with how this decision will hurt you, but it's cool, because you still have your dad, who's kind of like Alan. Wow. I never thought of it that way. You and Tim both care for an autistic person in some way, yet I'm choosing a family friend instead of my boyfriend. Weird coincidence, huh? But my decision is made; true, moon-crossed love comes in a distant second. Simply giving Tim my time, my family's financial support, our access to top-notch physicians (given my widely spaced eyes, we clearly have had a difficult time finding a superb optometrist), and all the other benefits of being wealthy is not sufficient. They need me more than I love you. After all, how else do you explain a single father with an autistic kid moving in amongst the aristocracy like my family? As if! They NEED me.
Anywho, remember when I told you not to tell me what I don't know? Well, bullets flying around must be scary, and that whole 9/11 thing must really affect you as a Special Forces soldier, but you made the wrong decision. Besides, arranging an entire wedding - not to mention dodging all the bridesmaid wannabes - is real behind the lines, Medal of Honor stuff! I can relate. My BFF Jill has been blowing up my cell with all sorts of gown pictures and flower arrangements. LOL
I should probably be more emotional about this all, but it's beyond my range (you know how I wane and lose steam when dealing with complicated and mature subjects). Even if I wanted to, I couldn't act convincingly sad, or anything like that. I thought the same of you, especially during that confusing moment with me before you went back to play Army, when you wore your heart on your sleeve (and your rank upside down) but it wasn't apparent what emotion it was. Next time you are really emotional, you should tell your face. Besides, it's clear that nobody with a heart could actually take my side in all this, since essentially what I'm doing is breaking your heart and devouring your soul through aggravatingly slow, mushy letters that are shallow as a thimble. It's almost like this was written by a writer who has perfected a saccharin storyline with implausible details.
But I'm sure you'd show deeper emotional range if something happened to your father. Speaking of your dad, could he be any weirder? I mean, I'm cool with "fun" autism, where it's all riding horses and entertaining kids in helmets, but your dad's different. I'm caring, but even I have my limits. It's almost as if he's acting; and, if so, he's a great actor...like Richard Jenkins. You? Not so much. Also, I hate lasagna FYI.
Oh, BTW, remember that Mule you and your father told me about? Well, Tim has a mule of his own. ;)
See you soon,
Savannah"
MONTAGE JOHN
Chris Kennison | Jefferson City, Mo United States | 05/27/2010
(2 out of 5 stars)
"Being a big fan of the ultra talented Amanda Seyfried, It pains me to admit that I was disappointed with DEAR JOHN. I wasn't disappointed with the acting, but more-so the lack of direction and lack of story.
Ultimately, DEAR JOHN, was littered with montage after montage after montage. I have never seen so many montages used to get points across in my life. Thanks to these 'how to tell a story quickly' montages, we never feel the emotions behind it all. We get a montage to show how they fell in love. We get a montage to show how they seperated. We get a montage that shows how they kept in contact while John (Channing Tatum) is in the military. We get a montage that shows how 9/11 effected their lives and so on and so on. There are many more MONTAGES to follow... including the finale.
Montages are used to get across a lot of information at a time or to get across that someone is doing a lot of the same thing over and over. First of all, there wasn't an overabundance of story here that 14-20 montages were necessary. Yet, with all the montages there should have been a bonus feature montage of the montage to get across how the director used the montages to tell his entire story.
Dear John could have been so, so much better had we truly spent some quality time with the characters dealing with their time apart, had the director had faith in his actors to get across the information with their emotions and acting abilities. Yet, he didn't, and the result was an extended high dollar Hallmark Cards commercial with 'A' list actors."