A love story that never ends

Rating: Null/10 (31 July 2016)

The Notebook
The Notebook features James Garner as Duke, Gina Rowlands as Allie Calhoun, Ryan Gosling as Noah Calhoun and Rachel McAdams as Allie Hamilton. The theme of The Notebook is you have to do what makes you happy instead of always trying to please others. We compromise our own happiness to avoid hurting others. You cannot help who you fall in love with despite your differences. Love will always be with you until the end and beyond, while material things can be taken as easily as you get them.
Duke and Allie Calhoun, a married couple living in a long term care facility. Alzheimer's disease has robbed Allie of her memories of the love she once shared with Duke. Duke reads Allie the love story of Noah Calhoun and Allie Hamilton every day. The story is a book that Allie has written once diagnosed with Alzheimer's. Allies parents disapproves of this "summer love" (The Notebook, 2004) due to their difference in economic status. One summer night Noah takes Allie to the Windsor Plantation, a historical house that he hopes to purchase and restore one day. The next morning Allies parents take her back to New York, one week earlier than planned. After 3 years Allie meets an injured soldier that is from old money. The two start dating and eventually Lon proposes. While Allie is out buying her wedding dress she is looking in the paper at who is attending her wedding. She opens the paper and sees Noah in front of the Windsor Plantation that he now owns and restored. A flood of feelings come start taking over Allie. She goes back to Sea Brook to see how Noah is doing. The love affair is rekindled. Allie has to choose between her wealthy fiancé and Noah, the love of her life. She chooses her own happiness over her family's, Noah. The Notebook and Titanic share a similar story line. Rose (Kate Winslet) is from a well to do family and her family wants her to be with a man of the same economic status. Jack (Leonardo Dicaprio) is a poor struggling artist who was lucky enough to win tickets to get on Titanic. They fall I love and naturally her parents disapprove. The lighting in The Notebook changes when the mood of a particular segment changes. High key lighting is used in the scene with Allie and Noah on the Lake. That particular lighting is used to intensify the rapturous passion between the two. The scene where Noah takes Allie out on the lake to see the snow geese, long shots, medium shots and close up are all used. The long shots show the isolation between Allie and Noah, everyone else and all of their worries. The medium shots indication the intense feelings to come between them. Close up shots enable the viewers to fuse to the actor's feelings. Love trumps all.