Not Another Teen Movie

Rating: 8/10 (17 April 2004)

I don't usually like this type of movie. That is, the teenage romance that tries to have underlying messages about how we all have a soulmate and that these two people are very lucky because they have found each other so early and now if they'd just realize it.
The premise is something you would see on Lifetime if you had chosen to stay home instead of going to the theater. In essense, the plot is the same as everything you see on made for TV movies but the plot is not what's so special.
Both Mandy Moore and Shane West giving either career best or career making performances. They take the cheap story thrown at them and they develop a chemistry between their different characters that people of all ages can appreciate.
I read the book about year after having seen the movie and I still think they did a good job adapting the novel. The movie contains all the needed parts of the book and does not drastically change anything. The humor in the book is tossed out in favor of a more somber and serious tone but that's good because it helps to set it apart from all other teen movies.
***/****