Jump to content

Dear John (2010 film)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For other uses, see Dear John.
Dear John
Theatrical release poster
Directed byLasse Hallström
Screenplay byJamie Linden
Based onDear John
by Nicholas Sparks
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyTerry Stacey
Edited byKristina Boden
Music byDeborah Lurie
Production
companies
Distributed bySony Pictures Releasing
Release date
  • February 5, 2010 (2010-02-05) (United States)
Running time
108 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$25 million[2]
Box office$115 million[2]

Dear John is a 2010 American romantic war drama film directed by Lasse Hallström, based on the 2006 novel by Nicholas Sparks. It follows the life of a soldier (Channing Tatum) after he falls in love with a young woman (Amanda Seyfried). They decide to exchange letters after he is deployed.

Dear John was released in North America on February 5, 2010, by Sony Pictures Releasing. It received mixed reviews from critics, and grossed $115 million against a $25 million budget.

Plot

[edit]

Staff Sergeant John Tyree is shot in Afghanistan while serving in the United States Army Special Forces in 2003. In voice-over he recalls a childhood trip to the U.S. Mint and compares himself to a coin in the United States military before stating that the last thing he thought of before he blacked out was "you."

In 2001, John is on leave in Charleston, South Carolina. He meets Savannah Curtis, a college student building homes for Habitat for Humanity while on spring break. Savannah invites John to a bonfire party where he meets her neighbor, Tim, and his autistic son, Alan. Over the next two weeks, they go on several dates and fall in love.

Savannah meets John's father who is obsessed with his growing coin collection and mentions to John his father may be autistic like Alan. An upset John storms off and during a fight accidentally strikes Tim, breaking his nose. Savannah sees the commotion and stops speaking to John. John apologizes to Tim, who offers to give Savannah a message. She spends one last day together with John before his deployment, and promise to continue their relationship long distance, via letters which will tell each other everything happening in their lives.

John and Savannah's plans to start a life together after his discharge from the Army goes awry when the September 11 attacks occur and John extends his deployment overseas. Savannah spends more time with Tim, deciding she wants to build a farm with horse stables to provide therapy and respite for autistic children. John and Savannah's romance continues for two years through their letters until Savannah sends a literal "Dear John" letter to break up with him, explaining she still loves him but has become engaged to someone else.

After being shot in Afghanistan, John is encouraged to return home but he re-enlists for a second time. Four more years pass, and John is sent home after his father suffers a stroke. At his father's bedside, John recites a letter he wrote to him, repeating the voiceover from the start of the film. the letter confesses that the first thing to cross John's mind after he was shot was coins, and the last thought before he lost consciousness was of his dad. Soon afterward, his father dies.

After the funeral, John visits Savannah and learns she married Tim, abandoning her dream of a riding camp for autistic kids because of Tim's lymphoma. She takes John to the hospital to see him and Tim tells John that Savannah still loves him. Back at the house, John and Savannah enjoy a quiet evening together, tempted to pick up where they left off years earlier, but don't follow through. John leaves distraught.

John sells his father's coin collection, keeping a valuable mule coin they found together years earlier. He donates the money to Tim's cancer treatment and he returns to the military, carrying the mule coin as a good luck charm. A final letter from Savannah tells him they received an anonymous donation but Tim died from his illness after only two months of treatment.

Months later, John returns home as a civilian. Parking his bike in town, he sees Savannah at a coffee shop, where they reunite and embrace.

Cast

[edit]

Soundtrack

[edit]
Dear John OST
Soundtrack album by
Various Artists
ReleasedFebruary 2, 2010 (2010-02-02)
GenreVarious
Length33:30
LabelRelativity Music Group
No.TitleMusicLength
1."Paperweight"Joshua Radin & Schuyler Fisk3:22
2."The Moon"The Swell Season4:40
3."Amber"3113:29
4."Exelsior Lady"The Donkeys3:34
5."Things & Time"The Wailing Souls3:22
6."Little House"Amanda Seyfried3:17
7."The is the Thing"Fink4:25
8."Think of Me"Rosi Golan3:09
9."You Take My Troubles Away"Rachael Yamagata & Dan Wilson3:39
10."Dear John Theme"Deborah Lurie1:53
Total length:33:30

Music

[edit]

The score to Dear John was composed by Deborah Lurie, who recorded her score with the Hollywood Studio Symphony at the Warner Brothers Eastwood Scoring Stage right after finishing her score for 9.[3] A soundtrack album containing songs was released on February 2, 2010, from Relativity Media Group, and a score album was released digitally the same day.[citation needed]

Release

[edit]

The film was released on February 5, 2010, in the United States.

Reception

[edit]

Box office

[edit]

Dear John has grossed $80,014,842 in North America and $34,962,262 in other territories for a worldwide total of $114,977,104.[2]

In its opening weekend, the film grossed $30,468,614, finishing first at the box office, knocking off Avatar after seven weekends in first place and making it the best debut for a film based on a Nicholas Sparks novel.[2][4]

The film was the second highest debut for a film opening Super Bowl weekend, just shy of Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert in 2008.[2][5]

Critical reception

[edit]

The film received mixed reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds a 28% approval rating based on 136 reviews, with an average score of 4.50/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "Built from many of the same ingredients as other Nicholas Sparks tearjerkers, Dear John suffers from its clichéd framework, as well as Lasse Hallstrom's curiously detached directing."[6] Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 from film critics' reviews, reports a rating of 43 based on 34 reviews, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.[7]

Accolades

[edit]
Year Award Category Work Result
2010 MTV Movie Awards Best Male Performance Channing Tatum Nominated
Best Female Performance Amanda Seyfried Nominated
Teen Choice Awards Choice Movie: Drama Dear John Nominated
Choice Movie Actor: Drama Channing Tatum Nominated
Choice Movie Actress: Drama Amanda Seyfried Nominated
Choice Movie: Chemistry Amanda Seyfried and Channing Tatum Nominated
2011 People's Choice Awards Favorite Drama Movie Dear John Nominated
ASCAP Film and Television Music Awards Top Box Office Films Deborah Lurie Won
CinEuphoria Awards Top Ten of the Year – Audience Award Lasse Hallström Won
Top Ten of the Year – International Competition Won
Best Actor – International Competition Channing Tatum Won

Home media

[edit]

Dear John was released on DVD and Blu-ray on May 25, 2010.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Dear John". bbfc.co.uk. Retrieved 17 November 2025.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Dear John (2009)". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on 2010-05-20. Retrieved 2010-05-19.
  3. ^ Goldwasser, Dan (2010-01-25). "Deborah Lurie scores Dear John". ScoringSessions.com. Archived from the original on 2011-06-24. Retrieved 2010-01-25.
  4. ^ Brandon Gray (2010-02-08). "Weekend Report: 'Dear John' Delivers, 'Avatar' Flies High Again". Box Office Mojo. Amazon.com. Archived from the original on 2010-02-14. Retrieved 2010-02-09.
  5. ^ "SUPER BOWL OPENINGS". Amazon.com. Archived from the original on 2010-02-10. Retrieved 2010-02-09.
  6. ^ "Dear John (2010)". Archived from the original on November 26, 2017. Retrieved April 10, 2021 – via www.rottentomatoes.com.
  7. ^ "Dear John (2010): Reviews". Metacritic. CNET Networks. Archived from the original on February 5, 2010. Retrieved February 7, 2010.
[edit]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dear_John_(2010_film)&oldid=1332492879"