When I worked for Reader’s Digest, author Nicholas Sparks dropped by to speak with us. No surprise here. We represented his audiences: middle-aged female readers longing for a touch of romance in their life.
Sparks wrote such best sellers as “Message in a Bottle,” “A Walk to Remember,” “Nights in Rodanthe” and “The Notebook.” Those weepy soap operas that pluck at the heartstrings. A nice guy, he’s well aware that he’s found a winning formula.
His novels are quickly made into movies. Like “Dear John,” currently playing at Greenville Grande and Carmike 12.
This time around he gives us a girl (Amanda Seyfried of “Mama Mia”) who falls for a soldier home from Afghanistan (Channing Tatum of “Public Enemies”). Natch, the soldier’s name is John.
Needless to say, life gets in the way of true love and the girl has good reason to cry. (Yes, it’s difficult not to include Nicholas Sparks and tearjerker in the same sentence.) Their love is tested in the wake of 9/11, an event that causes him to re-enlist.
Heartthrob-in-the-making Channing Tatum gets a chance to flex his dramatic muscles, while Amanda Seyfried cries a lot. This is going to be a tearful year for the young actress (next starring in “Letters to Juliet”).
Director Lasse Hallstrom (“Chocolat,” “Cider House Rules”) does a good job of adapting the novel to the screen. He has directed four actors to Oscar nominations — Michael Caine, Judi Dench, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Juliette Binoche. So there’s a good chance that Richard Jenkins (nominated for “The Visitor”) may get a second Oscar nod for his part as the supportive dad in “Dear John.” He’d deserve it.
Sparks has been called “the John Grisham of romantic drama.” That’s simply a way of saying moneymaker. 
 
Shirrel Rhoades is a media/marketing consultant based in Key West, Fla. Contact him at srhoades@aol.com.