Safe Haven

'Safe Haven' is from the same author as romantic classic 'The Notebook.' 'Safe Haven' is not exactly as generic as 'The Notebook' but it does qualify as pretty boring in terms of cinematic exploration.

Despite the story – on paper – seeming fairly interesting and relatively unique to the romantic genre, the film still manages to bore you for the first hour of it. In fact, the last 30 minutes of the film are sadly the most interesting. Before that we have endless conversations that seem pointless and clichéd, naff romantic gestures and unrealistic characters. Domestic abuse is sadly a very real problem for many but this film somehow makes the issue seem very unrealistic and as something so dramatic it could never happen in real life. Beautiful people deal with their problems in a beautiful, idyllic small town very quickly and very easily, it isn't exactly interesting.

The acting was a lot better than I had expected; Julianne Hough was a bit flat in some scenes but her performance wasn't bad – just not memorable. Josh Duhamel gave a fairly good performance; he was not playing a pretty face with zero background like he has done in other films and he managed to show he can act with at least a little depth. David Lyons gave the best performance in the film but unfortunately had the least amount of screen time. Playing the creepy, alcoholic, abusive husband, he made the final act worth watching and was quite scary.

Overall, the film certainly is not a bad film; it just isn't a very interesting or memorable one. It's full of clichés and there are not many emotional, heart-warming scenes so it is a little bit bland.

I took my girlfriend to see this, mostly as she cant miss a love story film.... she wasn't disappointed with this. She loved every minute of it. As a male, I thought it was a bit wet, but still enjoyed it. Hough was an easy actress to watch, not only pretty, but accomplished at her art. This was seemingly written for her girlish look and persona. The scenery and cinematography were nothing short of amazing... Locations were perfect, id live there in a heartbeat.... Duhamal was frankly excellent in this role too, he played his part perfectly, and was the perfect choice for this film.

The script was given a twist, and I sat through most of the film not quiet sure what was going to happen next, it definitely kept me intrigued, although I found it a little slow at a few points, i still walked away liking the film as a whole.

Definitely worth going to see, certainly on the big screen, as the locations were amazing....

Great suspenseful romance, great casting and beautiful location. Acting is great, characters are great- in the mood for a good romance- Nicolas Sparks is your man. Can't see how anyone can have anything to gripe about in this film.

I watched Safe Haven knowing that Nicholas Sparks wrote the story, and not having read the book. This movie completely exceeded my expectations. As I write this, the tears are drying on my face. I believed the chemistry was there with the actors and the romance had a good build-up (not rushed). I like that the story was easy to follow. The actions scenes were well-directed and realistic. I like how the story incorporates action, suspense, drama, and romance, all in one. What really moved (shocked) me was the ending. It was so beautiful and I just started bawling. It was so moving. As a whole, I really enjoyed this movie.

I just read a few negative professional critics' reviews of this movie, and I'm still wondering why they're so clueless. This is a combination of a damsel in distress story and a fairy tale aimed at female romance readers/viewers and should be evaluated as such, not as a story requiring the utmost in verisimilitude. The earnings for the movie show that it has reached and pleased that kind of audience. If you suspend disbelief, you'll be able to enjoy it and occasionally be moved by it. Some movies are meant for niche entertainment (like this one), and others are designed to reveal important truths about life, history and human nature. It's the old apples and oranges comparison, guys. In reviewing a fairy tale in terms of a serious story, you reveal your misunderstanding of both.