A few years ago Diane Lane and Richard Gere filmed “Unfaithful” where she does the cheating. That role got her nominated for an Oscar.
In this re-teaming of the same stars, it’s she who’s cheated on, and I can tell you, she won’t be getting any Oscar nods. In this, Adrienne (Lane) has just learned that her philandering husband (Christopher Meloni) wants her back after having left her and the kids seven months ago for the ‘other’ woman. While reconsidering her marriage, she decides to house-sit her friend’s inn in Rodanthe, North Carolina where there will be only one guest, Dr. Paul Flanner (Richard Gere) – how convenient. Oh, and a hurricane’s coming – how convenient. Apparently Dr. Paul has some issues and secrets of his own and soon the two, stranded in a storm, are sharing life’s realities, pains and grievances. But while Gere’s character evolves, Lane’s doesn’t. She’s trying to learn lessons about life, but is incapable of true change. (Like when her cell phone rings and she’s just about to be kissed by Gere for the first time, she answers it just to chat with her kids.) I don’t want to reveal the unexpected ending (at least not to those who haven’t already read the Nicholas Sparks book) but you’ll hopefully walk away with a great realization, and that is that your kids won’t die if you forfeit a weekend to take a little bit of time for yourself. The movie’s biggest mistake is Lane’s angry teenage daughter who suddenly turns around at the speed of light to be her mother’s best friend. I’m sorry, but anybody with teenage girls knows this is highly unlikely. It’s a very flawed movie with a lot of sappy setups (for reasons that can’t be divulged without ruining the plot) but this tearjerker will undoubtedly please the same fans of “The Notebook.” Two tiaras