Safe Haven (2013)

A young woman with a mysterious past lands in Southport, North Carolina where her bond with a widower forces her to confront the dark secret that haunts her.

Director:

Lasse Hallström

Writers:

Dana Stevens (screenplay), Gage Lansky (screenplay),

Stars:

Julianne Hough, David Lyons, Josh Duhamel

2 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Julianne Hough	...	Katie
Irene Ziegler	...	Mrs. Feldman
Jon Kohler	...	Bus Station Clerk
Tim Parati	...	Bus Station Worker
David Lyons	...	Tierney
Josh Duhamel	...	Alex
Giulia Pagano	...	Pushy Bus Woman
Juan Piedrahita	...	Jr. Detective Ramirez (as Juan Carlos Piedrahita)
Red West	...	Roger
Noah Lomax	...	Josh
Mimi Kirkland	...	Lexie
Robin Mullins	...	Maddie
Jasper Grey	...	Bus Boy
Tora Hallstrom	...	Ivan's Waitress
Wendy Wilmot	...	Realtor

Storyline

When a mysterious young woman named Katie appears in the small North Carolina town of Southport, her sudden arrival raises questions about her past. Beautiful yet self-effacing, Katie seems determined to avoid forming personal ties until a series of events draws her into two reluctant relationships: one with Alex, a widowed store owner with a kind heart and two young children; and another with her plainspoken single neighbor, Jo. Despite her reservations, Katie slowly begins to let down her guard, putting down roots in the close-knit community and becoming increasingly attached to Alex and his family. But even as Katie begins to fall in love, she struggles with the dark secret that still haunts and terrifies her . . . a past that set her on a fearful, shattering journey across the country, to the sheltered oasis of Southport. With Jo's empathic and stubborn support, Katie eventually realizes that she must choose between a life of transient safety and one of riskier rewards . . . and ...

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Plot Keywords:

widower | ghost | two word title | abusive husband | husband wife relationship | 

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery | Romance | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for thematic material involving threatening behavior, and for violence and sexuality

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Portuguese

Release Date:

14 February 2013 (USA)

Also Known As:

Drosa Osta

Filming Locations:

North Carolina, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$28,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$21,401,594 (USA) (15 February 2013)

Gross:

$71,324,509 (USA) (17 May 2013)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Relativity Media, Temple Hill Entertainment, Nicholas Sparks Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

115 min

Sound Mix:

Datasat Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The lead role was offered to Keira Knightley. She was almost cast when she ultimately declined so she could star in Can a Song Save Your Life?.

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Goofs

When Alex is driving Katie home, the paint cans are the only items on the back seat. In later shots of both of them from the front of the Jeep, there's a large brown paper bag there too. When they arrive at Katie's home, Alex opens the rear driver's side door of the Jeep Cherokee, reaches in and lifts this bag (containing painting supplies, he tells her) from the rear seat.

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Quotes

Jo: I wish I had a good excuse, but I have a curiosity.

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Connections

Featured in Chelsea Lately: Episode #7.24 (2013)

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Soundtracks

"My Baby's Got To Pay The Rent"
Written by Ryan T. Boldt
Performed by The Deep Dark Woods

User Reviews

A Little Bit Bland

'Safe Haven' is from the same author as romantic classic 'The Notebook.' 'Safe Haven' is not exactly as generic as 'The Notebook' but it does qualify as pretty boring in terms of cinematic exploration.

Despite the story – on paper – seeming fairly interesting and relatively unique to the romantic genre, the film still manages to bore you for the first hour of it. In fact, the last 30 minutes of the film are sadly the most interesting. Before that we have endless conversations that seem pointless and clichéd, naff romantic gestures and unrealistic characters. Domestic abuse is sadly a very real problem for many but this film somehow makes the issue seem very unrealistic and as something so dramatic it could never happen in real life. Beautiful people deal with their problems in a beautiful, idyllic small town very quickly and very easily, it isn't exactly interesting.

The acting was a lot better than I had expected; Julianne Hough was a bit flat in some scenes but her performance wasn't bad – just not memorable. 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. David Lyons gave the best performance in the film but unfortunately had the least amount of screen time. Playing the creepy, alcoholic, abusive husband, he made the final act worth watching and was quite scary.

Overall, the film certainly is not a bad film; it just isn't a very interesting or memorable one. It's full of clichés and there are not many emotional, heart-warming scenes so it is a little bit bland.