The Notebook (2004)

A poor yet passionate young man falls in love with a rich young woman, giving her a sense of freedom, but they are soon separated because of their social differences.

Director:

Nick Cassavetes

Writers:

Jeremy Leven (screenplay), Jan Sardi (adaptation)

Stars:

Gena Rowlands, James Garner, Rachel McAdams

12 wins & 10 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tim Ivey	...	Rower
Gena Rowlands	...	Allie Calhoun
Starletta DuPois	...	Nurse Esther
James Garner	...	Duke
Anthony-Michael Q. Thomas	...	Nurse Keith
Ed Grady	...	Harry
Renée Amber	...	Nurse at Counter
Jennifer Echols	...	Nurse Selma
Geoffrey Knight	...	Barker
Kevin Connolly	...	Fin
Ryan Gosling	...	Noah
Heather Wahlquist	...	Sara Tuffington
Rachel McAdams	...	Allie
Andrew Schaff	...	Matthew Jamison III
Matt Shelly	...	Seabrook Boy

Storyline

In a nursing home, resident Duke reads a romance story to an old woman who has senile dementia with memory loss. In the late 1930s, wealthy seventeen year-old Allie Hamilton is spending summer vacation in Seabrook. Local worker Noah Calhoun meets Allie at a carnival and they soon fall in love with each other. One day, Noah brings Allie to an ancient house that he dreams of buying and restoring and they attempt to make love but get interrupted by their friend. Allie's parents do not approve of their romance since Noah belongs to another social class, and they move to New York with her. Noah writes 365 letters (A Year) to Allie, but her mother Anne Hamilton does not deliver them to her daughter. Three years later, the United States joins the World War II and Noah and his best friend Fin enlist in the army, and Allie works as an army nurse. She meets injured soldier Lon Hammond in the hospital. After the war, they meet each other again going on dates and then, Lon, who is wealthy and ...

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Plot Keywords:

letter | second chance | summer love | class differences | nursing home | 

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Taglines:

Behind every great love is a great story.

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for some sexuality

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Warner Bros [United States]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 June 2004 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Notebook

Filming Locations:

Cypress Gardens - 3030 Cypress Gardens Road, Moncks Corner, South Carolina, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$29,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$13,464,745, 27 June 2004

Gross USA:

$81,001,787

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$115,533,700

Company Credits

Production Co:

New Line Cinema, Gran Via, Avery Pix

Technical Specs

Runtime:

123 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film rights to the novel were acquired by New Line Cinema in 1996, represented by producer Mark Johnson. Jeremy Leven was hired to write the script, which caught the attention of Steven Spielberg in 1998, who wished to film it with Tom Cruise as Noah Calhoun. Spielberg's commitment to other projects led to Jim Sheridan becoming attached to direct the following year. Filming was to start in 1999 but was pushed back over rewrites. Sheridian eventually backed out by October 2000 to work on In America (2002).

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Goofs

When Noah goes to mail his final letter to Allie, we can see sunlight shining through the envelope right before he puts it in the mailbox and there is obviously no letter in it.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Nurse Selma: Excuse me. Come on, honey, let's get you ready for bed

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Alternate Versions

The love scenes had to be toned down to avoid an R rating in the United States. The footage is featured on the DVD as deleted scenes.

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Connections

Referenced in Saturday Night Live: Natalie Portman/Dua Lipa (2018)

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Soundtracks

Where or When
(1937)
Music by Richard Rodgers
Lyrics by Lorenz Hart
Performed by Aaron Zigman

User Reviews

SImple but wonderful

This movie seems to be postcard perfect, a lesson straight out of the director's guide to romantic movies. Boy meets girl at a carnival, love from the other side of the tracks, a date by the water, etc. And yet the wonderful thing about this movie is that it takes what seems like a story you've heard already (at least in bits and pieces) and still moves you deeply. It really speaks about love in a way that most romantic movies miss by speaking in cliché or over shoot by adding in numerous complications to dramatize things. There have been other great movies to comment on love in recent years (Eternal Sunshine, Lost In Translation jump to mind) but this movie fills a need that those other movies miss: the need for a straight, sweep you off your feet romance. Too bad there can't be movies like this every year...