Safe Haven, the latest film adaptation of a Nicholas Sparks novel, was released this past Valentine’s Day. For those who haven’t had a chance to see it, here’s what to expect: A mysterious young woman named Katie (played by Julianne Hough) appears in Southport, North Carolina. She is determined to avoid forming close ties to members of this small, tight-knit community. Despite her efforts in closing herself off, she comes to befriend her neighbor Jo and Alex (Josh Duhamel), a widowed storeowner with two young children. As Katie begins to fall in love, the past that she has been running away from finally catches up with her and she is faced with a difficult decision – stay and live a life with love, or run in search of a fleeting sense of safety.
Past film adaptations of Sparks’ novels include The Notebook, Dear John, and The Lucky One. All deal with passionate, deeply felt romances and the obstacles that must be overcome in order to pursue or salvage that love, as well as the joy and tragedy that goes with facing such challenges. Each storyline brings in a serious element – Alzheimer’s, the war in Iraq, the strange relationships we form with death and the deceased. The trailer for Safe Haven suggests it is as much a touching, if not cheesy, romance as its predecessors are. However, as Lasse Hallstrom is directing it – his work includes Chocolat (2000) and the Academy Award winning drama, The Cider House Rules (1999) – we might expect a more dramatic treatment of the dangerous past that Katie is trying to escape from.