Channing Tatum, Amanda Seyfried Can’t Quite Deliver ‘Dear John’

CHICAGO – Love stories are as common at the movies as popcorn and sticky floors. Despite this, rising stars Channing Tatum and Amanda Seyfried add their own spin to the timeworn plot theme in “Dear John.”

Rating: 3.0/5.0

Set initially in the year 2000, John (Tatum) is a soldier on leave when he first encounters Savannah (Seyfried) at the beach, where he gallantly rescues her purse after it falls in the drink. This gets him an invitation to a party that Savannah is throwing, and the first seeds of romance begin to sprout between the two.

In the next two weeks, the emerging couple grow close very quickly, as they find commonality and chemistry through their life’s purpose. Savannah is inspired to help others because of a father (Henry Thomas) and his autistic son. John is an Army Ranger with several tours of duty, escaping his home life because of a disconnect with his father (Richard Jenkins), who oddly prefers his coin collection to any kind of social contact.

The couple’s newly found love is filtered through the various assignments that take John away, but their correspondence – through a series of heartfelt letters – continues to strengthen their bond. It is the events of September 11th that radically alters their relationship, as John begins a series of longer overseas duties. On the home front, Savannah is experiencing some separation anxieties of her own, and the couple’s love is tested through perpetual war and the difficult circumstance of being apart.

Continue reading for Patrick McDonald’s full review of “Dear John” [16]

Let Us Be Lovers: Channing Tatum as John and Amanda Seyfried as Savannah in ‘Dear John’ Photo credit: Scott Garfield for © 2010 Dear John LLC

Continue reading for Patrick McDonald’s full review of “Dear John” [16]