My husband Mike is happy to report that this Valentine’s Day, there is a film out their the ladies will want to see (hello! Josh Duhamel) but men will also enjoy. How is that possible you ask? Mike describes the new movie Safe Haven, as a romantic thriller! I often send Mike to cover movie events since that is his deal. I mean, the man has a masters degree in film studies. Of course, by sending him this meant sacrificing my chance to meet Josh, but as you can see, Mike seemed to enjoy the experience.
Josh Duhamel - Photo credit: Caryn Bailey
Mike joined several other bloggers and had the chance to interview the stars of the film, Josh along with Julianne Hough and writer Nicholas Sparks. When asked what he enjoyed most about making this film, Josh referred to the relationship of his character with Julianne’s and said, “I think that what makes the story interesting about these two is that it’s a bunch of little moments, it’s not a lot of big forced romantic gestures. Its little things that collectively, by the end of the movie, you’re rooting for [them}.”
As I hinted at, Safe Haven is not just another romantic movie. According to Mike, it lies somewhere between Hitchcock’s North By Northwest and a dark Woody Allen film. Josh elaborated on the film making process, “(Director) Lasse’s whole idea was to not force anything. The expectations are already going to be there in a Nicholas Sparks movie to have these big romantic movie moments. We tried to play against that as much as we could. They’re still going to be there, but we don’t have to force feed the audience with it.”
The movie has twists and turns. The plot was so surprising, that Mike won’t even tell me what happens and insists on taking me Valentine’s weekend to see it. I can tell you this, the film takes place in a beach town in North Carolina, which is the location of choice in all of Nicholas Sparks’s books. Some other Sparks books turned into movies include: Message in a Bottle, A Walk to Remember, The Notebook, Nights in Rodanthe, The Last Song and Dear John.
Nicholas Sparks - Photo credit: Caryn Bailey
Nicholas Sparks describes the character development of Josh Duhamel and Julianne Hough’s characters who both have had tragedies in the past and are moving forward through the course of the story, “what you have to do is realize that everyone has a past. And as long as you really feel like you can get to know someone, a future is still very possible.” This could also be the film described in a nutshell.
In an upcoming post, I will tell you all about Mike’s interview with Julianne Hough!
For more information on SAFE HAVEN:
Like Safe Haven on Facebook
Follow @SafeHavenMovie on Twitter #SafeHaven
Watch the trailer & clips on YouTube
Find Safe Haven on Instagram & Pinterest too!
