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A Walk To Remember
 cast: Shane West, Mandy Moore, Peter Coyote, and Darryl Hannah

director: Adam Shankman

98 minutes (12) 2002 widescreen ratio 16:9
Warner DVD Region 1 retail

RATING: 3/10
 reviewed by Michael Lohr
Based upon the wonderful novel by Nicholas Sparks, the movie adaptation of A Walk To Remember falls terribly short of its goal, unless its goal was to bore the friggin' tar out of you. If you are a 16-year old girl, then this movie will captivate you from beginning to end, much the same way any other bland American teen 'chick flick' would do. This movie is supposed to be a dramatic, pseudo-Romeo And Juliet coming of age film; rather it struggles to be entertaining on any level. Hell, even Dirty Dancing was better than this.
   Set in Beaufort, in North Carolina, a small southern town that time forgot and economic prosperity long since abandoned, we have the typical 'bad boy' Landon (played by Shane West) and the Baptist minister's southern belle, 'goody-goody' daughter Jamie (played by Mandy Moore) meet each other at their high school drama class and sparks fly immediately. Or at least there are supposed to be sparks, but the sticky sweet, sugar-coated drivel that pours from the screen would make even the most ardent pop culture-addicted person sick with saccharin poisoning.
   I would recommend you read the book and skip this movie altogether. Actually, for a far better, more edgy and entertaining coming of age movie that is worth seeing, rent Ghost World.
   DVD extras: separate commentaries from Shane West, Mandy Moore and director Adam Shankman. There is an interview with novelist Nicholas Sparks and screenwriter Karen Janszen; also a music video for Mandy Moore's 'Cry'. The disc has a Dolby digital 5.1 soundtrack in English or Quebec French, plus Spanish and French subtitles.
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