Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
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SALT LAKE CITY -- Nicholas Sparks has made his books, and the subsequent movies, enormously successful by plying a fairly simple, consistent formula: open with tragedy, wind wounded, sympathetic characters around and through a fairly predictable plot, and then kill somebody off.
There you have it, and with "The Lucky One" all you have to do is plug in Zac Efron as Logan, a war-torn Marine who believes a picture of a beautiful woman he found amidst the rubble of a battlefield helped save his life.
The image haunts him and when discharged, he's determined to find the woman. In the background of the photo is a lighthouse. With a little research he discovers it is located in Louisiana so he walks, with his dog, all the way from Colorado.
Now, plug in another wounded individual, Taylor Shilling as Beth. Yes, she's the mystery woman in the photo. Divorced, grieving over a lost brother, Beth works at her grandmother's kennel. Ah, we even have a love of dogs connection forming here.
When Logan finally walks, literally, into town, he asks around and finally someone steers him to Beth. Oh, he intends to explain why he's there at the very beginning, but of course he can't and he accepts a job cleaning the kennels. All the while, Logan is trying to figure out why the picture was on the battlefield, who lost it there and how Beth fits in.
While the film isn't great, it's passable for a date night movie.
Now we plug in the complicating factors because they have to fall in love, right? Beth has a little boy and a very jealous, redneck ex-husband who wears a deputy's badge. He isn't happy about the competition.
OK, if I go much deeper you won't have to buy a ticket. While the film isn't great, it's passable for a date night film. Guys, this is one that will buy you an indulgence when the next hard-core action movie comes along.
Efron is fine. This isn't his breakout role certainly, but he's showing real promise. Shilling delivers a misty-eyed spunk that is irresistible. But the real weight in the movie comes from Blythe Danner as grandma, and while it's a supporting role, she's a highlight. Director Scott Hicks makes the most of the gorgeous southern scenery with fabulous shots that should book up tours of the bayou, but I don't think it's enough to book up the theaters.
What can I say? It's vintage Nicholas Sparks. I'm giving "The Lucky One" 2 ½ stars and it's rated PG-13.
