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Navigating the Heart starring Tim Matheson and Jaclyn Smith 

Posted on October 25, 2015 Written by Pinar Tarhan

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Navigating the Heart starring Tim Matheson and Jaclyn Smith
Navigating the Heart starring Tim Matheson and Jaclyn Smith.Image via ice poster.com.

How I love a good old-fashioned romance film with a happy ending!

Well, if you want a more expensive, sadder yet less realistic seaman falls in love with a city woman film, watch Message in a Bottle. It has Kevin Costner, Paul Newman and Robin Wright, and is beautiful to look at. It’s also nicely shot, directed and acted. The problem? It’s based on a Nicholas Sparks movie.

Now, I’m not against Nicholas Sparks. I actually like how he creates bestselling romances, and that they are made into films where I get to see a lot of actors and actresses in sweet, escapist roles. My problem is with Nicholas Sparks’ endings.

But Navigating the Heart is more me because well, there are no kids, dead or cheating spouses, hidden identities that will cause huge fights, terminal illnesses or deadly accidents.

It sure has a lot of arguing stemming from the early proud and prejudiced moments of the two main characters, who will later discover that they actually have a tone in common and hell of a chemistry.

Navigating the Heart starring Tim Matheson and Jaclyn Smith
Navigating the Heart scene. Tim Matheson and Jaclyn Smith. Image via port.rs.

Okay, I should tell more about the plot at this point. Here we go:

Manhattan magazine’s well-known writer Edith (Jaclyn Smith) isn’t happy with the direction the magazine’s taking and grudgingly accepts an assignment on the high prices of salmon. Heading from Manhattan to a small fishing village in Ottawa would causes the expected culture shock, but things get more unpleasant when she meets handsome yet grumpy fisherman John Daily (Tim Matheson). While he is loved by everyone there, he’s not at all in the mood for a know-it-all reporter who’s after a superficial story.

And if she wants the best story, she will have to find a way to survive a few trips on John’s boat without killing him.

But while these two think the other one is insufferable, nature decides to throw in a deadly storm and a leak to make matters worse.

And this time, what doesn’t kill you, can make you fall in love.

Navigating the Heart movie
Navigating the Heart image via timewarnercable.com.

Of course there’s the difference of lifestyles and locations, but things might not be as complicated as they initially seemed…

*

You might very well hate this movie if you’re not a romantic. But even as someone who doesn’t like eating fish and can’t imagine herself on a fishing boat, it became one of my favorite romances.

Because when you want to feel good, you might need some clichés.

It also helps if you like Tim Matheson. (I really do.)

Inspired by a true story, 2000 TV flick Navigating the Heart was directed by David Burton Morris, written by Cathleen Young and Lee Guthrie. Based on the novel Fishing with John by Edith Iglauer.

PS If you want something depressing, darker and with sci-fi, try Another Earth. You can read about it my writing blog. But worry not! I warn before the spoilers come.

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Filed Under: Movies and Actors Tagged With: jaclyn smith, Message in a Bottle, navigating the heart, navigating the heart movie, Nicholas Sparks, tim matheson

City of Angels starring Nicolas Cage and Meg Ryan

Posted on August 4, 2010 Written by ripitup

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City of Angels starring Meg Ryan and Nicolas Cage
City of Angels starring Meg Ryan and Nicolas Cage. Made in 1998. Image via http://www.dizimatik.com

Seth (Nicholas Cage) is an angel, conveniently located in the City of Angels, Los Angeles. His job is to appear to dying humans and take them with him in a friendly manner. He has the ability to appear to the humans – whether they are dying or not. He has no sense of touch or pain. He doesn’t feel fear and he is pretty much an immortal.

Maggie (Meg Ryan) is a pretty and sensitive doctor who is in a semi-serious and not so passionate relationship with a fellow doctor named Jordan (Colm Feore) from the same hospital.

Observing Maggie, Seth becomes fascinated by this pretty, humane and emotional woman. Maggie finds herself attracted to this mysterious stranger as well. Obviously an angel is not supposed to fall in love, but it is already too late for Seth. But he can’t just exactly ask her out. And soon Maggie will want to know more information than he volunteers.

Help comes in the form of a hospital patient called Messinger (Dennis Franz), who also can see Seth. But unlike Maggie, this middle-aged man has a pretty good idea about what Seth actually is. As it happens, this man used to be an angel as well. But when he fell in love with a woman, he chose to be a regular mortal. It all takes one big jump. So, Seth has to choose between the world he knows and Maggie…

City of Angels is undoubtedly a sappy love story but it does come with Nicholas Cage and Meg Ryan. And it is story was somewhat more refreshing than Meg’s other romantic roles. The movie also has a great slow-rock soundtrack featuring U2, Alanis Morisette, Goo Goo Dolls and more. Being the romantic that I am, I do love the unconditional love aspect of the story – and how these two really connect and see through each other’s souls. But there is one element that can make up for sappiness and this is what the movie lacks: a good ending. But I’ll get to the that in a minute. ,

Written  by Dana Stevens- based on the German film Der Himmel über Berlin (incorrectly translated as Wings of Desire) from 1987. The German screenplay was written by Peter Handke, Richard Reitinger and Wim Wenders. City of Angels was directed by Brad Silberling.

Rated 6.4 on IMDB. Without the ending, my vote is a 6 or a 7. With the ending, I can even go as low as a 4.

And now, for those who have already seen the movie or the ones who just don’t mind major spoilers, here is why the ending breaks the movie:

Now, obviously there are many people who hated or disliked the movie as a whole or loved the film and found the ending to be just perfect. But as for me, I liked the movie a lot but despised the ending. Not just because an unhappy ending really renders Seth’s whole reason of being a human pointless but because the writer(s) chose the stupidest unhappy ending possible (I haven’t seen the German film so I don’t know if I am just blaming Dana Stevens or the others). What Meg Ryan does… I mean who does that? Seriously? Who rides a bicycle, eyes closed on a busy highway??? Even a suicidal or a masochistic person would prefer something else. But she is not even suicidal or masochistic, is she? She is blissfully happy….

If they were going to kill Meg Ryan, they could and should have at least gone with something less stupid. But I’d rather have a happy ending. Not just because I am a hopeless romantic –which I am- but I am a fun-loving, entertainment-obsessed romantic. So it is precisely because I love to have fun or at least get lost in a good story, I do demand a good ending. If it is going to be unhappy, it has to feel natural in the context of the story. I shouldn’t feel like the writer created tragedy for tragedy’s sake- which is a specialty of Nicholas Sparks and I really can’t stand how he ends his stories.

If you are a hopeless romantic, this is a must for you. If you have liked anything with Meg Ryan or Nicholas Cage, watch this. If you have a soft spot for tragic endings, by all means- this is the movie for you. But if you do want to watch something depressing yet naturally tragic with Nicholas Cage (where you probably wouldn’t have wanted or rationalized another ending) watch Leaving Las Vegas. If you want an in-your-face, realistic and very impressive Cage, watch Lord of War. And if you do want to watch a different kind of Meg Ryan movie, watch In the Land of Women, where the movie is definitely not about her ending up with the love of her life.

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Filed Under: Movies and Actors Tagged With: Brad Silberling, City of Angels, city of angels movie, city of angels soundtrack, Dana Stevens, Der Himmel über Berlin, drama, fantasy, Los Angeles, Meg Ryan, meg ryan city of angels, movies, Nicholas Cage, nicholas cage movies, Nicholas Sparks, nicolas cage, nicolas cage movies, Peter Handke, Richard Reitinger, romance, Wim Wenders, Wings of Desire

Actor musicians and musician actors, part 3: Shane West and David Bowie

Posted on October 28, 2009 Written by ripitup

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You might find it odd that I am writing about Shane West and David Bowie in the same post. Their fame levels and target audience might seem different but they fit the criteria of the post and I guess there can be people who know and like them both, since I’m one of them.

DAVID BOWIE

David Bowie during his Space Oddity days
David Bowie during his Space Oddity days

David Bowie is a cult musician. His songs are featured in over 200 films. His first album was released in 1967 so it is safe to say he has been around for over 4 decades now. His music is influential and his songs have been sung by other artists, such as Nirvana. Given Nirvana is probably the most popular grunge band and Bowie’s unique rock/pop sound has influenced them also, it becomes quite clear he is a universal idol. Do I like all his songs? No. They are all so different from each other. But there is a Bowie song to be found to suit all your moods and a Bowie picture to fit any kind of fashion statement; from contemporary to glam and flamboyant. But Bowie’s artistic talent is not limited to singing and song writing. He has also appeared in many films. I last saw him in the 2006 movie The Prestige, playing the role of Nikola Tesla. He has also appeared in The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976), The Hunger (1983), The Last Temptation of Christ (1988) and Basquiat (1996); in addition to many other film and TV appearances. He has even played Andy Warhol, the leading man of the pop art movement. Sure, his acting might be critically praised but his name will probably never be mentioned as one of the most influential actors. But to this day, he remains as a musical icon. Below is The Hunger movie poster.

The Hunger
The Hunger

SHANE  WEST

Shane West as Landon in A Walk to Remember
Shane West as Landon in A Walk to Remember

Shane West is a young and promising actor. He is singing and playing the guitar for the band Jonny Was. Now, Shane isn’t insanely famous neither as a musician nor an actor, but he is building a strong movie resume bit by bit. He is only 31, and he has a bit of a baby face that gives him the advantage to play younger parts if he wants to. He totally passed for a high schooler in A Walk to Remember, at the age of 24. He has gotten to play Tom Sawyer alongside Sean Connery in The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen and he has scored one of the major roles in the long-running hospital drama ER. He has played in Echelon Conspiracy – an action movie that has quite a clever script, which is not so easy to find nowadays. This year he has starred in The Lodger, a high-paced thriller. So he has proved that he can undertake many different characters, and not just a romantic sweetheart, like he did in A Walk to Remember. Shane has a long way to go as an actor but things have been promising so far.

As for his band, I am not sure how many of his fans are just from the music scene only. I really enjoyed A Walk to Remember, an adaption of the best-selling Nicholas Sparks novel. The movie’s soundtrack was quite good, despite some of the songs were sung by Mandy Moore. Which reminds me she does act and sing, but her music is too standard pop for my taste. This soundtrack, however also contains a song by Shane’s band, known as Average Jo back then. It is modern rock with some punk energy in it and it is fun. Nothing you haven’t heard of before but it is the stuff I’d like to hear when I’m out with my friends and just want to dance and have a good time. And Shane’s movies are good for pure entertainment.

Shane is right in the middle, posing with his band Jommy Was
Shane is right in the middle, posing with his band Jonny Was

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Filed Under: Movies and Actors, Rock n' Roll (and Music in general) Tagged With: A Walk to Remember, actors, David Bowie, ER, Mandy Moore, music, Nicholas Sparks, Rock n' Roll (and Music in general), Shane West, Space Oddity

Reviews of 4 Nicholas Sparks Movie Adaptations: A Walk to Remember, Nights in Rodanthe, Message in a Bottle and The Notebook

Posted on August 6, 2009 Written by ripitup

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SPOILERS!

I really like the 4 movies I mentioned above. They feature talented and beautiful stars, they are beautifully directed and they have been adapted from the works of the same author: Nicholas Sparks. I have never read him, and I am not exactly tempted to.  Although I am a romantic who likes her emotional stories, I am also big fan of escapism- I like the movies that take us to a more beautiful place. But Sparks does seem to like giving this feeling and then abrubtly taking it away.

Let’s go over the movies shortly, shall we?

*Message in a Bottle (1999)

Starring: Kevin Costner, Robin Wright-Penn

message-in-a-bottle-posters
Kevin Costner and Robin Wright-Penn in Message in a Bottle. Co-starring Paul Newman as Costner's dad.

Garret Blake (Costner) is a sailor and he builds boats for a living. He is yet to overcome his beloved wife’s death. He has written love letters to her and sent them out into the open sea.

Theresa (Penn) finds the letters on the beach and decides to find the writer. She is a single mother- and having previously been cheated on, she wants to find the man who is so in love with his wife. And being a journalist, she does convince her boss that it is a business trip.

When she does get to meet Garret, she of course can’t tell him the truth. Garret is attracted to this fragile and beautiful stranger- the first woman he has ever felt close to after the loss of his wife. Theresa was already in love with the idea of the man. Real Garret only exceeded her expectations…

So two previously hurt people find love again. It is beautiful. We sail, laugh and cry with them. Of course they have obstacles. Theresa lives in the city and has a son, plus she can’t really get over feeling that he will never love her the way that he loved his wife…And he is bound to find out how Theresa got to find him… Couldn’t we have just sorted out these and moved along? Couldn’t we have let these likable characters be happy? Well, I could… But Nick had other ideas. It is a lovely story. But the truth is if you are looking for realism, why would you watch this in the first place? How many people love so unconditionally like that? How many people love like that for the second time? (in Theresa’s case-Garret might be her only true love) And what are the odds that they are going to look like Wright-Penn and most of all- Kevin Costner? So if we have let go all of the cynism and stretched our imaginations so far, why not let us have a happy ending?

message_in_a_bottle_ver3

* A Walk to Remember (2002)

Starring: Shane West, Mandy Moore

17911633_406pxA_Walk_To_Remember_Poster
Shane West and Mandy Moore in A Walk to Remember

Yeah, of course you have all heard it before. Bad Boy. Good Girl. They fall in love. It turns out Bad Boy is actually a great guy- given the faith and chance. But…Before the but, let’s describe the good and bad in this movie.

The bad boy is Landon Carter (Shane West). He is your typical angry and popular teenagers. His grades are low, the headmaster isn’t too fond of him, the girls love him,hates his father who left him and his mom for another woman and of course he thinks being unpopular is worse than death.

Cool, hot and bad
Shane's character: Cool, hot and bad.

But one day he gets into trouble he can’t get out of, and the headmaster has the pleasure to make him do everything he despises. As if it is not enough that the trouble gave him temporary crutches…

Jamie is everything Landon isn’t. Nice, unpopular,uncool,a religious jamie%20sullivanvirgin.They have known and despised each other for a long time. But now, Landon has to play the lead in the theater group,tutor kids with learning problems- basically has to turn to Jamie for help. At some point though, they get to be less judgemental about each other and even get to be some sort of friends.

Landon goes for an impulsive, unscripted kiss
Landon goes for an impulsive, unscripted kiss

However Landon doesn’t seem to be ready to leave his previous lifestyle and lets his friends believe he is definitely not friends with Jamie-right in front of her. At the play night, Landon will realize not only he misses Jamie’s friendship, but that he is attracted to her…

Everyone is shocked- his friends, Jamie, him,…Now he has to prove to Jamie that he is not the bad-ass she thinks he is. He gets the chance when his friends play a horrible joke on Jamie and he sticks with Jamie, leaving his group. He persuades Jamie and her dad (the priest) to go on a date. OK- since I really like this movie, I can gladly explain why the clichés do not bother me:

1) Jamie isn’t quite an ugly duckling. For one thing, she is not ugly, just plain. For two, She just doesn’t believe in expressing herself with clothes. She sings and shows her beauty at the play and yet doesn’t maintain the glamorous attitude afterwards.

2) Landon only hates his father (played by David Lee Smith) – he is actually helping out his mom at home.

3) Jamie shows him just like he sees her as a loser, she does see him as loser who will have nothing in life after high school. And as they are forced to spend time together, they realize that maybe things aren’t so black and white…

After this, it is so romantic. They go on dates, they have great fun together- Landon respects Jamie’s boundaires.

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OK. So the bad boy turning to the romantic in every girl's dream is a bit of a strecth. But hey, movies are for escapism. And where else are we going to see this kind of character looking like Shane West) anyway?

Perfect. Landon turns out from the guy who you would wanna have sex with yet wouldn’t be able to have a relationship from to the most amazing boyfriend on the planet. Does it last? Of course not. Jamie tells Landon one big secret that turns his life upside down. She has cancer. She has had it for a long time. And she is not responding to treatment. Landon is crushed. He is bitter and he is furious. I would be to. You fall in love head over heels and to find out you are going to lose that person forever? Life’s way of giving you the bird. He even asks for his dad’s help. But he can’t go around being angry at Jamie, right? She might die anytime…

shane-west103

So he sticks by her bed. He tries to do everything she has ever wanted. He makes her happy. It is great. Seriously. Previous asshole is the soulmate we have been dreaming about. And he looks like Shane West. Too unrealistic. So let’s kill the girl and make it even…

A-walk-to-remember-a-walk-to-remember-692352_962_716
A collage of A Walk to Remember Scenes

 

* The Notebook (2004)

Starring: Ryan Gosling, Rachel McAdams

The Notebook poster: Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams

Two time frames:

Present, retirement home. We see the interactions with two old people (played by Gena Rowlands and James Garner).

Past, a rich girl called Allie (McAdams) falling for the poor boy Noah (Gosling). They are mad about each other. They fight a lot but they can’t and won’t stay away from each other.

Allie and Noah
Allie and Noah

notebook

Somehow her mother manages to drive a wedge, yet neither of them forgets. We get to hear their story from the notebook the old guy in the retirement home is reading to the old woman. She loves the story of these two lovers who cross paths years later- when his name is on the newspapers for a lovely restoration he has made. She is about to be engaged to a guy (played by James Marsden) she actually loves. But she can’t resist the urge to talk to him. The house belongs to both their pasts. So she visits him. They get to let out their feelings, and face why they were driven apart. Then Noah wants her to leave her fiancé- she is torn. But her feelings for Noah are just too strong…

It is beautiful. They stayed together. They had lovely children. They are still togeter- in the retirement home. You see, the guy is Noah- reading the story to Allie. How can you not be touched by that? Where’s the drama, you ask? Noah has to read the story to her over and over again because she has Alzheimer’s and she has no clue who he is. She flashes and remembers maybe for a minute- and then she forgets again…

Lovely,touching and tragic. It might be how it happens in real life. We don’t get to be in love forever, I get that. But sometimes I feel like the sad parts are thrown in just to make you cry. I love the movie, just like I love the ones mentioned above. Still, couldn’t have Allie remembered? Couldn’t she have a more managable disease and have her memory??? Of course, it wouldn’t be so powerful but…you get the point.

* Nights in Rodanthe (2008)

Starring: Richard Gere,  Diane Lane

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Richard Gere and Diane Lane in Nights in Rodanthe

Actors are supposed to play all kinds of parts but let’s be honest, some actors do some roles better than others. And Richard Gere is great at drama- especially he is playing a romantic role. In Nights in Rodanthe, Richard plays a doctor named Paul. He is staying at the inn for a couple of nights. He is an unhappy man- he is being sued, his grown son doesn’t like him…

The only other person at the inn is Adrienne (Diane Lane), looking after the place for a friend. She is not having the time of her life either. Her husband has left for another woman now wants forgiveness, her daughter isn’t fond of her and her son has a condition…

They find it easy to get along, to open up to each other. They understand what being a parent is….They know about disappointments and mistakes. They truly see each other and they fall in love. It is the kind of romance that you dream about.

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nightsinrodanthee

nightsinrodanthemoviestill

And it is so easy to fall in love with Gere. 59 at the movie, he is still hot. Diane Lane is also naturally beautiful. You like them. You don’t want them to be apart. But Paul has to do one thing before they can be together in the long run- he has to go see his son, renconcile with him and help him with his patients.

nights-in-rodanthe-tsrimg1

Long distance doesn’t ruin things. To the contrary. It empowers their feelings. They are looking forward to meeting again. The day finally comes. But Paul doesn’t. The next day, the door bell rings and Adrienne gets to meet his son. He doesn’t have good news…

Yes, Sparks did it again. He took the lovely fantasy and took it away in the end.

How am I supposed to read his work- when I know there’s a 99% chance at least one main character will die? Where is the fun in that?

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Filed Under: Movies and Actors Tagged With: A Walk to Remember, Diane Lane, Kevin Costner, Mandy Moore, Nicholas Sparks, Rachel McAdams, Richard Gere, Robin Wright-Penn, Ryan Gosling, Shane West, The Notebook

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