The Lucky One
Starring: Zac Efron, Taylor Schilling, Blythe Danner
Director: Scott Hicks
Rating: 3/5
Nicholas Sparks movies have almost become their own genre as so many of his books have been adapted for the big screen, The Lucky One is the latest to get a movie makeover.
Logan Thibault (Zac Efron) is a Marine who has survived three tours of duty in Iraq.
He attributes his good luck to a photograph he carried of a woman he doesn't even know. When he returns to the States, he sets out to find her.
Ok lets get the bad out of the way first the movie is a little predictable, you really can see how it is all going to pan out almost straight away.
But having said that there is a real charm and warmth to this film and it seems to be a quality that all Sparks adaptations seem to have.
Without a doubt Zac Efron is the heart and soul of this movie as the Marine who is trying to find his way back into the world as well as trying to find the words to say thank you.
Taylor Schilling also turns in a great performance as Beth, a young woman who is trying to death with the death of her brother as well as keeping her bully of an ex-husband at bay.
But it's Blythe Danner who has some of the best lines in the movie - she is the all seeing eye who sees the appearance of Logan as something that is meant to be.
The Lucky One is not just a syrupy love story as there are some very complex issues and relationships going in the film.
Logan is trying to comes to terms with the fact that he survived when so many didn't while Beth is trying to cope with the loss of her older brother, who was also killed in action oversees.
The relationship between Beth and ex-husband Keith is one of the best in the movie - he is a bully who constantly threatens her with the removal of their young son.
There is also a bully type relationship between in Keith and his son while Keith is also belittled by his own father.
The Lucky One is very much a story about coming to terms with and accepting things that happen in life as well as learning to move forward and stand up for yourself.
It is a sweet relationship between Logan and Beth that just feels so genuine between the two actors - Logan and Beth are two people who find each other when they are most in need of help.
What the movie really does lack though is the emotional punch it's all just a little bit nicey, nicey and perhaps a little safe.
The Lucky One is out now
FemaleFirst Helen Earnshaw
Tagged in Blythe Danner Zac Efron Taylor Schilling