A film about youth, but not another youth movie

Rating: 7/10 (27 September 2012)

Lasse Halström is a skilled director who knows how to make teen idols perform in serious dramas. I used to like What's Eating Gilbert Grape (with Johnny Depp and Leonardo DiCaprio) more but still I find Dear John a nice romantic film where Channing Tatum (former model and commercial performer) has made his best performance so far. His character fills all the scenes and he looks very convincing - often more than his female partner Amanda Seyfried (ex-model as well).
The plot is realistic, not with big surprises and twists, but I guess lots of viewers can identify themselves with the same or similar situations. Long-range love, single parents' issues, hard illnesses are familiar to most of us.
Recommended to those fond of intense relations and profound issues.