Safe Haven
Tags: melodrama, boring, neo noir, murder, flashback

Plot synopsis:
In suburban Boston, a young woman (Julianne Hough) leaves her house after being shown in possession of a bloody knife. She is shown moments later buying a bus ticket, her hair now cropped and bleached, and stops at a small town called Southport, North Carolina. At the general store, she introduces herself as 'Katie'. After acquiring a job as a waitress and buying a small house on the edge of town, Katie befriends her next door neighbor, Jo (Cobie Smulders) and meets Alex Wheatley, (Josh Duhamel), the manager of a local convenience store, and his two children, Lexie and Josh. Alex's wife tragically died of cancer a few years prior.Alex immediately takes a liking to Katie, doing small helpful things, such as leaving an old bicycle at her house. They go on a 'family' trip to the beach, and Alex asks her to go canoeing with him, after which, they fell in love with each other. Lexie immediately accepts Katie, while Josh is initially resistant, believing Katie to be his late mother's replacement, but eventually accepts her as well.Meanwhile, Kevin Tierney (David Lyons), a Boston police officer, searches for Katie and, using his authority as a police officer, sends out reports saying that she is a wanted murderer. Upon seeing her picture in the police station, Alex confronts Katie and becomes angry that she didn't trust him enough to even tell him her real name, Erin. The picture flashes to Kevin's boss confronting him at work, pointing out he always carries a water bottle that turns out to be filled with vodka, and reveals that Erin was Kevin's wife. Erin/Katie was an abused wife of an alcoholic and sociopath police officer whom she left after he physically beat her a few too many times.Directly afterward, Katie is shown packing while talking angrily with Jo. Alex drives over to Katie's house to talk to her, only to discover that she left. He drives to the nearest ferry and admits he's fallen in love with her and promises to protect her no matter what. Initially, Katie wants to flee but then she decides to stay in Southport and she and Alex help prepare the town for the upcoming Fourth of July celebration.Later, Katie tells Alex that Kevin is her husband, whom she stabbed with a kitchen knife in order to protect herself from his drunken assault. Meanwhile, Kevin breaks into Katie's former neighbor`s home back in Boston and finds the phone number to the Southport restaurant that employs Katie. He finds the location and makes his way there, very noticeably drunk. Arriving just on time for the Fourth of July parade, Kevin begins his search for Katie through the crowd, belligerent and determined to confront her. He finally finds Katie and watches from a distance at her dancing with Alex and watches as he leans over to kiss her, which makes him angry. Later, Katie has a dream that she is standing on the docks watching the fireworks when Jo comes up and tells Katie that "he" is here.Katie wakes up in the convenience store next to a fast asleep Lexie. While she is walking around in the store, Kevin makes his appearance and confronts her, drunk and sobbing and asking her to talk. He asks her to come back to Boston with him, but she refuses and tells him to leave. He pulls out a revolver while Katie asks Lexie to stay up in the second floor of the store, scared that she might see Kevin and become frightened. Meanwhile, Kevin is pouring gasoline all over the store, with the intent to burn it down with Katie inside. He sits down on the steps with a lighter, deep in thought, and Katie fakes sympathy for him and agrees to return home with him, only to push him into the water by surprise. However, a firework spark lands on the gasoline, igniting a fire that spreads all over the store.Alex, busy shooting off fireworks, sees the burning store and quickly makes his way across the lake by boat. He stands on the dock, pleading with Lexie to jump into his arms. After a brief hesitation, she finally does. Meanwhile, Katie is wrestling with a soaked Kevin who is attempting to shoot her. After a long struggle on the ground with Kevin holding the gun and Katie desperately trying to keep him from pointing it her head, she makes one last desperate grab at the gun and it goes off, killing Kevin. Soon after, Alex finds Katie and they embrace.In the aftermath, Alex rifles through a desk, whose contents were spared from the fire, belonging to his late wife, where he finds multiple letters she prepared ahead of time for memorable events such as Josh's eighteenth birthday and Lexie's wedding day. Alex gives Katie a letter with the words "To Her" on the envelope. The letter talks about how if someone is receiving this letter, then Alex loves her without a shadow of a doubt. She says she is thankful for whoever is now reading the letter and thanks the reader for making Alex feel young and in love again. The movie ends by revealing that Jo, who had supposedly left town moments before, was actually the ghost of Alex's late wife.

Review: I watched Safe Haven knowing that Nicholas Sparks wrote the story, and not having read the book.
Duhamal was frankly excellent in this role too, he played his part perfectly, and was the perfect choice for this film.The script was given a twist, and I sat through most of the film not quiet sure what was going to happen next, it definitely kept me intrigued, although I found it a little slow at a few points, i still walked away liking the film as a whole.Definitely worth going to see, certainly on the big screen, as the locations were amazing.....
If someone were to tell me that the latest Nicholas Sparks novel-to-a-movie adaptation would be one that starred two ridiculously attractive actors playing characters who almost fall in love when a secret from the past that can keep them apart is revealed nearly thirty minutes before the movie ends ...
Have you not been paying attention!?" Anybody who does not reside in a cave would know this.Safe Haven is yet the latest of Sparks' novels to follow this same "winning" (they continue to be profitable!) formula/pattern and it rather saddens me this is director Lasse Hallstrom's SECOND Sparks film as the (thrice) Oscar-nominated director has made GREAT films in the past such as The Cider House Rules, Chocolat, What's Eating Gilbert Grape and Salmon Fishing on the Yemen (I've also just realized his greatest films have an edible word in the title).Safe Haven stars Julianne Hough (Rock of Ages) as Katie, a beautiful young woman on the run from her past.
Safe Haven also stars Josh Duhamel (New Year's Eve) as Alex, a handsome widower and saintly father raising two young children in a small, coastal North Carolina town.The two meet soon after her arrival in town and begin a friendship (rather reluctantly on her part) after she meets him at the small convenience store he runs -- his cute daughter runs the cash register!
Exactly.Their entire relationship is contrived in a connect-the-dots Nicholas Sparks pattern and the film's supporting players each have a single purpose for the movie -- her jerk of an ex looking for her (David Lyons - Eat Pray Love), his cop pal who can discover her secret in an instant (Ric Reitz - Flight), his children to either look cute or get into trouble, and her country neighbor giving her relationship advice on Alex (Cobie Smulders - The Avengers).Hallstrom has made this better than most sappy melodramatic romances (and Hough and Duhamel are both likable-enough stars) but Sparks' over-the-top climatic children-in-peril moments have become eye-rolling.
Josh Duhamel gave a fairly good performance; he was not playing a pretty face with zero background like he has done in other films and he managed to show he can act with at least a little depth.
if your hoping for a second notebook you have to know its not that good...okay maybe Julianne Hough is not the right actress to be in this role but she did her best and you may like her innocence in her role but i didn't like her so much...Directed by Lasse Hallström, the movie will teach us that in the darkest hour, love is the only light that shines there in the darkor something like that.
An affirming and suspenseful story about a young woman's struggle to love again description will work out just fine...i don't want to talk so much about the movie go watch it what are you waiting for and maybe you will use some tissues so go for it and have a good time...its my first review and I'm not good as well in English hope it helps tank you for reading....
Her performance  never felt believable and that hurt the chemistry with her co-star Josh  Duhamel, who has also made a living off rom-coms like When in Rome, or  Life as We Know It. Those mediocre movies look like masterpieces when  compared to Safe Haven.
The movie begins with a young scared girl named Katie (Julianne Hough)  making a frenetic escape from her hometown in Boston to a small North  Carolina town known as Southport.
Yes the film is romantic and sweet and girls will love this movie, but  I don't think the male audience will be won over by the suspense and  thrills.
Just thought I'd make that clear, so I didn't have to sift through responses saying at how I'm romantically ignorant to films like Safe Haven because I've never experienced a true romance myself.Let me tell you, if real-life romances are anything like the schmaltzy, picturesque, contrived trite presented with us in the latest Nicholas Sparks film adaptation, I'd rather be eternally bound to my pet cat.
Marking the eight Sparks film adaptation, Safe Haven isn't impossibly unromantic like The Vow (not a Sparks-coined film, but last year's Valentine's Day cash-grab), yet it stems from the same touchy, over-sentimentalized roots many of these pictures do, offering nothing more than a cheap escapist fantasy.The backdrop for this story is Southport, North Carolina, a coastal area which is populated with happy, good-looking, witty white people that look like they were cut out of GQ/Maxim magazine covers.
Southport is the place where our protagonist Katie Feldman (Julianne Hough) believes she can find solace in, after catching a bus and a plane, running away from an unknown problem in the beginning of the film.Upon touching down, she tries out the area a bit before buying a rundown shack in the middle of absolute nowhere, and when she goes to buy paint for her floors, she meets Alex (Josh Duhamel) and his two sweetheart children, Josh and Lexi.
She drums up a relationship with Jo (Cobie Smulders), a local southerner who attempts to teach her the noble ways of the land she has just set foot on.As anyone can tell, Alex and Katie begin hanging out more, inevitably become more attracted to one another, and all in good time for that pesky problem burdening Katie's past to come back and bite her.There's an irritating emptiness to Safe Haven, which is beginning to drive me nuts in new romantic films (romantic comedies are a somewhat different story).
I was expecting this movie to be just another chick-flick romance, but since this film adds thrill and mystery to a typically cheesy genre, I find myself enjoying it a lot more.
So it goes like this, my wife suggested the other day that we might go see a movie of a mutual choice, currently playing in the local cinema is Mama(my kind of movie) Being a fan of Nicholas Sparks's previous adaptations, particularly The Notebook & Nights In Rodanthe, the mutual nature of choosing together went completely out the window as I thought to myself, lets do the date movie thing.Now apart from the Nicholas Sparks reference I knew nothing about the movie, and granted I prefer to watch horror movies, whodunnits, as I have done all the live long day, I have as I've gotten older broaden my scope when it comes to big screen entertainment.However there comes a time in a married man's life when you gotta say, whoa nellie!
In recent times you have systematically resurrected the romantic drama from it's slumber but with this glossy piece of dreck you are trying to pull the wool over the cinema patron's eye.Something told me that we were not going to be in the same territory as his previous screen adaptations, and I said as much to the wife, when I exclaimed to her 'Something tells me my love, you are not going to shed a tear at this one' but hey what do I know, I'm a guy(as the character in Say Anything said, the world is full of guys, be a man) well I'm man enough to say, this was not the movie for me, and if you check out what I've reviewed in the past, you might well agree.That being said, you've been warned, No Safe Haven.....sorry Sleeping With The Enema is instantly forgettable.
This story line had so much potential with domestic abuse, redemption, love, family, but the screen writers TOTALLY missed the mark - Josh Duhamel does a decent job - not the vacuous role he is usually placed in and pulls off more than a pretty face here - David Lyons as the alcoholic Detective Tiernny and abusive husband of Hough shined - he seems made for bad guy roles - Julianne Hough - I think the girl has some potential as actor given a more meaty role but as stated this was painfully drawn out with idyllic lazy southern settings where IMPOSSIBLY in a town of 2000 no one questions the appearance of a newcomer and in fact embraces her without question (being from the south - that "ain't" how we operate - if you are in town for more than 48 hours we know everything about you if we have to pry it out with a velvet crowbar), impossible circumstances, clichés enough to fill a NY phone book.
The first half hour of the film is about Katie walking on the street, the forest, getting a job (finding one the first day), walking home, going to work, meets Alex, walk back home, go to work, keep walking, go to Alex store again and BOOM it start the second act of the movie.
Safe Haven is romantic–drama that has strong performances with a sudden twist in the end which will keep you entertained till the endThe Story Katie escapes from shrewd , short-tempered husband only to land in a gorgeous town Southport, North Carolina surrounded by beautiful locales and serenity.
Things turns ugly when her husband comes back.From the director of Hachi , Salmon Fishing in Yemen , Safe Haven is refreshing romantic drama based on Nicholas Spark's novel of same name.
Her runaway leads Katie to a perfect little town on the shores of North Carolina, where she find a waitress job, and try to forget her mysterious past actions.The encounter of single-father Alex (Josh Duhamel) and his 2 perfect and lovely young children is changing Katie's plans...Let us be clear : this film is not your typical thriller movie.
This film tells the story of a young woman who arrives in a small town and find a safe place for herself, after having to run away from the city.As an Nicolas Sparks adaption, I naturally have high hopes for it.
It's suspenseful, full of twists and turns, some mystery and a big twist at the end -which after reading the book I'd been curious if they'd even include in the movie because its so random.I enjoyed both Julianne Hough and Josh Duhamel, their romance and chemistry was good, not great or epic (The Notebook) but nice, believable.I also really enjoyed David Lyons, who takes on the tasty role of the bad guy here.
He's the kind of character you love to hate and it was intriguing watching him slowly unravel into an alcoholic haze in his hunt for Katie.And (despite myself) I liked the ending with the letter "to her." Now that was a real Nicholas Sparks moment.
What else is one supposed to do when confronted by such nonsense?The story (ending silly plot twist aside) reminded me very much of "Sleeping With The Enemy." A woman (Julianne Hough) escapes from an abusive husband to a small town and sets herself up with a new life, meets a guy, falls in love but finally has to deal with the ex-husband.
The novelist Nicholas Sparks has created many of the incredible and heart-wrenching love stories from The Notebook to the The Last Song yet his latest novel to become a film Safe Haven outshines even those extremely popular films.
Erin Tierney (Julianne Hough) arrives in a small town in North Carolina going by the name of Katie Feldman and immediately caught the eye of a widower and single father of two kids, Alex, played by Josh Duhamel.
I was motivated to write after reading one review, and actually used a similar title to indicate which one prompted me to write.Not wanting to 'spoil' things for readers who haven't seen "Safe Haven" I only wish to point out that my view of the pace of the film is that it is necessary due to circumstances beyond the control of the protagonist.My wife and I enjoyed this movie, especially the ending, but then again, we both love a good "chick flick".
Safe Haven The best thing about running from your past is that you can start all over again in a different town, under a different name, as a different race.Unfortunately, the fleeing female in this romantic-thriller chose to remain Caucasian.Dying her hair blonde, calling herself Katie and moving to rural North Carolina, Erin (Julianne Hough) tries to settle into the town as inconspicuously as she can.But her presence doesn't go unnoticed by the local grocer/widowed father of two, Alex (Josh Duhamel).Despite her rejections, Alex and his offspring eventually lure Katie out of her emotional isolation.Meanwhile, Katie's drunk and abusive husband arrives in town looking for her.Darker than previous Nicholas Sparks adaptations, Safe Haven's domestic abuse subplot provides unintentional laughs to a completely ludicrous love story.Besides, quaint coastal communities with hunky widowers are the first places sadistic husbands look for their runaway wives.Red Light vidiotreviews.blogspot.com.
But with reading the book and seeing how they butcher the characters and story, I haven't been able to watch the movie all the way through since I saw it in theaters and was immensely disappointed to say the least then, and now just cannot finish the miscast and mislead film.
Even though she's colored her hair and changed her name to Katie and is constantly looking over her shoulder for fear of exposure, Erin begins to make friends and establish connections in this idyllic locale - this despite the fact that she's being hunted by a tenacious and determined Boston detective (David Lyons) who refuses to give up the pursuit even when the trail appears to have gone cold.For all its good intentions and lip service to reality, "Safe Haven' is never able to shake its dime-novel aura and taint - not a surprise given that it is based on a work by Nicholas Sparks, that modern-day purveyor of romantic triteness best known, to movie audiences at least, for "The Notebook." The distraught woman just happens to land in a town that just happens to have a dreamy general store owner (Josh Duhamel) who just happens to be a widower with two young children, one an adorable little girl (and Mimi Kirkland really IS adorable) and the other a son who's having trouble coping with the loss of his mother who just happened to be in the flower of her womanhood when she died.
I've seen many movies based on the Nicholas Sparks books from Message In A Bottle to The Last Song and a few days ago I saw Safe Haven for the first time.
Josh Duhamel is sexy and kind hearted as Alex, his character is stunned when a beautiful blonde woman shows up in town and his feelings for her are genuine and how he vows to keep her safe from danger is like that of a knight in shining Armour.David Lyons gave a chilling performance as Tierney an abusive husband and alcoholic police detective who stops at nothing to find his wife.At the beginning of the story viewers are introduced to Erin Tierney (Hough) a young woman who after years of suffering violent abuse at the hands of her alcoholic husband Kevin (Lyons) decides to escape with the help of an elderly neighbour.
Her spirit stayed behind in order to ensure that her family would be happy and to help her husband and his new love find one another.Filled with suspense, drama and plenty of romance Safe Haven is a good film for anyone who enjoys a love story with a twist..
In Safe Haven, Swedish director Lasse Hallstrom returns to the director's chair, having directed 2010's Dear John, with Josh Duhamel, Cobie Smulders and Julianne Hough playing key characters in a tale about the unlikely relationship between a widower and an abused woman.If you're entering the movie without prior knowledge of what the key twists are in the film - there are two - then you may just enjoy the revelations when the cat's let out of the bag at the appropriate time.
I went into it not knowing what to expect as I hadn't really watched the story line, and I loved it.The locations the movie is set in are beautiful and the actors did an amazing job of telling the story of something most people would find hard.The story line itself is inspiring and it gets you thinking throughout the whole thing.Would definitely recommend to anyone, no matter what there usual film genres are..
Even though Nicholas Sparks' books have similar plots, this story can truly spark your interest.Safe Haven starts out with Katie (Julianne Hough) escaping from her past as she is being chased by what looks to be a detective.
You might like this movie if you enjoyed: Sleeping with the Enemy (1991), P.S.: I love you (2007), The Lucky One (2012)The Story: Leaving a tragic incident behind her, a woman (Julianne Hough) flees from her hometown to get a fresh start in the small North Carolina town of Southport.
'SAFE HAVEN': Two and a Half Stars (Out of Five) Another film adaptation of a Nicholas Sparks book.
It stars Julianne Hough and Josh Duhamel as the two leads and was directed by Lasse Hallstrom (who also directed the film adaptation of another Nicholas Spark book, 'DEAR JOHN').
The overall feel of the movie reminded me a little of the 1991 Julia Roberts hit 'SLEEPING WITH THE ENEMY' , which is odd coming from a Nicholas Sparks adaptation, but in the end it's really no different than other Sparks films (I'd put it at the same level as 'DEAR JOHN' and 'THE NOTEBOOK').Hough stars as Katie.