Plot
A pair of former high school sweethearts reunite after many years when they return to visit their small hometown.
Release Year: 2014
Rating: 6.0/10 (1,302 voted)
Critic's Score: 27/100
Director: Michael Hoffman
Stars: James Marsden, Michelle Monaghan, Luke Bracey
Storyline
A pair of former high school sweethearts reunite after many years when they return to visit their small hometown.
Writers: J. Mills Goodloe, Will Fetters
Cast: Michelle Monaghan -
Amanda
James Marsden -
Dawson
Luke Bracey -
Younger Dawson
Liana Liberato -
Young Amanda
Gerald McRaney -
Tuck
Caroline Goodall -
Evelyn
Clarke Peters -
Morgan Dupree
Sebastian Arcelus -
Frank
Jon Tenney -
Harvey Collier
Sean Bridgers -
Tommy Cole
Rob Mello -
Ted Cole
(as Robert William Mello)
Hunter Burke -
Abee
Robby Rasmussen -
Bobby /
Aaron
Caroline Hebert -
Young April
Ian Nelson -
Jared
Opening Weekend: $10,003,827
(USA)
(17 October 2014)
Gross: $10,681,140
(USA)(20 October 2014)
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Did You Know?
Trivia: Paul Walker was cast in the lead role but after he passed away, the role was given to James Marsden. See more »
User Review
Author:
Rating: 8/10
Following an explosion on his oil rig, Dawson (James Marsden) has a
glimpse of the girl he loved from his teenage years. Elsewhere, Amanda
(Michelle Monaghan) is home with her alcoholic husband and teenage son,
wondering what went wrong in her life and thinking of her first true
love. When the news that their old friend Tuck (Gerald McRaney) has
passed away, Dawson and Amanda are reunited and assigned to spread
Tuck's ashes. As well as confront the ghosts of their past from their
youth.
The film is an adaptation of the Nicholas Sparks novel of the same
name. While I personally wasn't a huge fan of the novel, I found the
film to be much better. The love story and history of the two lead
characters and fleshed out more, as was the character of Tuck. While it
did feature some major differences in the last act, it worked well.
That aside, as a film, it is a very sweet love story (not as great as
some of Sparks' prior films however). As we watch the story unfold
between Amanda and Dawson as adults, we are given flashbacks to them as
teenagers (played by Luke Bracey and Liana Liberato), which leads to
where they find themselves today. Bracey and Liberato provide great
performances as the younger Dawson and Amanda, they're great on their
own, and have great chemistry to where we really buy them as couple.
Bracey plays Younger Dawson with charm and innocence. Liberato shines
as Younger Amanda. We initially see her as this pretty and bubbly girl,
but she has an edge to her that Liberato shows off flawlessly. James
Marsden and Michelle Monaghan play the older versions of the two
characters. While the chemistry isn't nearly as concrete as the younger
versions, we do get a decent feel of a relationship between the two. On
their own, Monaghan gives the better performance of the two as a woman
torn between the life of her past and the life she currently has.
Marsden's performance, while not terrible, is hardly note-worthy. He
definitely could have given more heart into the role as opposed to
charm. One of the most note-worthy performances of the film however is
Gerald McRaney as Tuck from the couple's younger years. We first see
him as a hard-ass old man, but he grows to show his heart when these
two teens come into his life. McRaney provides the most humor and heart
in the story and easily becomes the most likable character in the
movie. Like most Nicholas Sparks movies, it will only appeal to certain
crowds. It has its really cheesy moments, but deep down there is a lot
to its core, apart from dealing with love, it deals with life in
general and where it takes us and where we can go from there.
The Best of Me features decent to solid performances with heart-felt
and tear-jerking moments. However in the long run it doesn't set itself
too far apart from the Nicholas Sparks formula.
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