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A Walk to Remember

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Plot

The best-seller by sentimental novelist Nicholas Sparks becomes this teen melodrama set in a coastal North Carolina port. Cocky, popular high school student Landon Carter (Shane West) is the big man on campus at Beaufort High School until a hazing incident leaves a fellow student paralyzed. Sentenced to community service and membership in his school's drama club, Landon is forced to seek help from Jamie Sullivan (pop singer Mandy Moore), the conservative, religious, plain-Jane daughter of the town's Baptist minister (Peter Coyote). When the two students begin to fall in love, Landon struggles with the drop in popularity that his new friendship brings, while Jamie is forced to deal with her strict father and a secret that she's keeping from her schoolmates. A Walk to Remember, which co-stars Daryl Hannah, is the second of Sparks's novels to make it to the big screen after Message in a Bottle (1999). ~ Karl Williams, Rovi

Cast

Clayne Crawford - Dean; Al Thompson - Eric; Paz de la Huerta - Tracie; Jonathan Parks Jordan - Walker; Matt Lutz - Clay Gephardt; David Andrews - Mr. Kelly; David Lee Smith - Dr. Carter; Marisa Miller - Ms. Garber; Dean Mumford - Policeman; Gordon Groddy - Choir singer; Mervyn Warren - Pianist; Paula Jones - Sally; Anne Fletcher - School play dancer; Cassidy Ladden - Choir singer; Alan Butler - Security Guard; Janie Barnett - Choir singer; Elaine Caswell - Choir singer; Vivian Cherry - Choir singer; Robin Clark - Choir singer; Frances E. Davis - Housekeeper; Diva Gray - Choir singer; Nikki Gregoroff - Choir singer; Xavier Hernandez - Luis; Seth Howard - Maitre D'; Arlene Martell Martin - Choir singer; Dino Muccio - Choir singer; Kevin Osborne - Choir singer; Jason Paige - Choir singer; Willie Teacher - Choir singer; Julia Ann West - Church lady; Eddie Zimmerhoff - Erik Smith

Credit

Linwood Taylor - Art Director, Matthew Mizel - Associate Producer, C. Douglas Cameron - Boom Operator, Fincannon & Associates - Casting, Doug Hall - Costume Designer, Adam Shankman - Director, Timothy M. Bourne - Second Unit Director, Tommy Ray Sullivan - Second Unit Director, Emma E. Hickox - Editor, E.K. Gaylord II - Executive Producer, Bill Johnson - Executive Producer, Edward L. McDonnell - Executive Producer, Casey La Scala - Executive Producer, Coni Andress - Hair Styles, Gina Baran - Hair Styles, Bernard Williams - Hair Styles, J. Bradley Smith - Location Manager, Mervyn Warren - Composer (Music Score), Mervyn Warren - Songwriter, Doug Hall - Production Designer, Julio Macat - Cinematographer, Denise Di Novi - Producer, Hunt Lowry - Producer, Andy Peach - Recording, Tony Shepherd - Recording, Burton Rencher - Set Designer, Kevin Hardison - Set Designer, Carl Rudisill - Sound Mixer, Avram D. Gold - Sound Editor, Jussi Tegelman - Sound Editor, Ed Callahan - Sound Editor, Dale Frye - Stunts, Kay Kimler - Stunts, Dino Muccio - Stunts, Willie Teacher - Stunts, Bob Fisher - Stunts, John Copeman - Stunts Coordinator, Robert C. Vazquez - Special Effects Supervisor, Karen Janszen - Screenwriter, Zana Aiken - Production Assistant, Jeff L. Anderson - Production Assistant, Greg Babor - Production Assistant, John W. Earvin Jr. - Production Assistant, Victor Giarusso - Production Assistant, Joanne Guthrie - Production Assistant, Kimberly Helms-Capps - Production Assistant, Afnahn Khan - Production Assistant, Cindy Retchin - Production Assistant, Cameron Shirley - Production Assistant, Eric Simkin - Production Assistant, Jason Zorigian - Production Assistant, Mark Dornfeld - Visual Effects Supervisor, Alison Greenspan - Executive in Charge of Production, Ray Simm - Publicist, Pat Story - Publicist, Bob Berman - Associate Editor, Debra Baum - Executive Music Producer, Tommy Ray Sullivan - Gaffer, Stacy L. Barnhill - Grip, Scott Frye - Grip, Randy Tharpe - Grip, Alan Rawlins - Key Grip, Jeremy Raub - Music Editor, James Wade - Post Production Coordinator, Terra Mair Abroms - Post Production Supervisor, Lisa Greenspan - Production Coordinator, Andrea Levine - Properties Master, Ezra Dweck - Re-Recording Mixer, Terry Rodman - Re-Recording Mixer, Chris David - Re-Recording Mixer, Melinda Taksen - Script Supervisor, Kathleen Tonkin - Special Effects Coordinator, Kent Eanes - Still Photographer, David A. Whittaker - Supervising Sound Editor, Doc Kane - ADR Mixer, Paul Aronoff - ADR Mixer, Eric Tomosunas - ADR Mixer, Courtney L. Bont - Art Department Assistant, Cindy Retchin - Assistant Costume Designer, Craig M. Rogers - Assistant Location Manager, Rick Pour - Assistant Makeup, Doug Kelejian - Assistant Properties, Michael Jones - Best Boy Electric, Riko Schatke - Best Boy Grip, Abbie Stuart-Sinclair - Buyer, Leanna Sheldon - Casting Associate, Michael Hal - Construction Coordinator, Ashley Sudge - Dolly Grip, Hans Gelpki - Electrician, Matthew Malloy - Electrician, Cristiano Palermi - Electrician, Brian L. Powell - Electrician, Jack Vollers - Electrician, Malcolm Warner Jr. - Electrician, James D. Young - Electrician, Joan Zulfer - First Assistant Accountant, Laura Macias - Foley Artist, Reuben Simon - Foley Editor, George Harding III - Greensman, Nicole Heffernan - Greensman, Julian Filiberti - Key Costumer, Rhea Lowenthal - Key Costumer, Jo Jo Guthrie - Key Hairstylist, "Jungle" Jim Shaughnessy - Leadman, Anamarie Gonzaga - Production Accountant, Donald R. Poush II - Second Assistant Accountant, Rudy Persico - Second Second Assistant Director, Larry Brew - Set Dresser, Fonda C. Fisher - Set Dresser, Henry H. Gardner Jr. - Set Dresser, Eric W. Skipper - Set Dresser, Ernest Parker Webb - Set Dresser, Rick Mobbs - Storyboard Artist, Burton Rencher - Set Decorator, Nicholas Sparks - Book Author

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A Walk to Remember

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A Walk to Remember

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A Walk to Remember

Theatrical release poster
Directed by Adam Shankman
Produced by Denise Di Novi
Hunt Lowry
Written by Nicholas Sparks (Novel)
Karen Janszen
Starring Shane West
Mandy Moore
Music by Mervyn Warren
Cinematography Julio Macat
Editing by Emma E. Hickox
Studio Gaylord Films
Di Novi Pictures
Pandora Cinema
Distributed by Warner Bros.
Release date(s)
  • January 25, 2002 (2002-01-25)
Running time 102 minutes
Country United States
Language English
Budget $11 million
Box office $47,494,916

A Walk to Remember is a 2002 American coming-of-age teen romantic drama film based on the 1999 romance novel of the same name by Nicholas Sparks. The film stars Shane West and Mandy Moore, was directed by Adam Shankman, and produced by Denise Di Novi and Hunt Lowry for Warner Bros. The novel is set in the 1950s while the film is set in 1998.

Contents

Plot

When a prank on fellow high-school student Clay Gaphardt goes wrong, popular but rebellious Landon Carter (Shane West) is threatened with expulsion. His punishment is mandatory participation in various after-school activities, such as the drama club, where he is forced to interact with quiet, kind and bookish Jamie Sullivan (Mandy Moore), a girl he has known for many years but to whom he has rarely ever spoken. Their differing social statures leave them worlds apart, despite their close physical proximity.

When Landon has trouble learning his lines he asks Jamie for help. They begin practicing together at her house after school. At first Landon is only using Jamie for her help with the play, and treats her coldly when his other friends are around. But as he spends more and more time with her, he is surprised to find she is far from the person he thought she was, and begins to question who he really wants to impress.

During the play, Jamie astounds Landon and the entire audience with her beauty and voice, and Landon kisses her on the stage. Afterwards, he tries to get closer to her, but she repeatedly rejects him. Soon thereafter, however, Landon's friends publicly humiliate Jamie by altering a photograph of her and placing her head on the body of a scantily clad woman. Landon angrily confronts his former friend, punching him and publicly siding with Jamie. Afterwards, Landon and Jamie begin a relationship in which Landon dedicates most of his time to her. He discovers that she has a wish list, and sets out to make all her ambitions come true, such as taking her to a state border so that she can stand on either side of the line and, thus, be in two places at once.

In the final stretch of the movie, Jamie confesses to Landon that she is afflicted by terminal leukemia and has stopped responding to treatments. Landon gets upset at first, and Jamie tells him the reason she didn't tell him is that she was moving on with her life and using the time she had left but then Landon happened and she fell in love with him.

Soon, word gets out about Jamie's illness. Eric, Landon's best friend, comes and tells him how sorry he is and that he didn't understand. Other friends come and apologize too.

Jamie's cancer gets worse, her father rushes her to the hospital where he meets Landon. Landon doesn't leave Jamie's side until her father practically has to pry him away. Jamie's father sits with Jamie and tells her that "If I've kept you too close, it's because I want to keep you longer."

Landon continues to fulfill various wishes on Jamie's list, such as building her a telescope so she can see a comet. Through this process, Landon and Jamie learn more about the nature of love. Jamie dies later, but only after the couple are married in the same chapel as was Jamie's deceased mother, the event that topped Jamie's wish list. Landon himself becomes a better person through Jamie's memory, achieving the goals that he set out to do, like she did.

Four years later, Landon visits Jamie's father and shows that he is still a better person because of Jamie by informing her father that he has been accepted into medical school; prior to falling in love with Jamie, he had no plans for his future after high school. Jamie's father tells him that both he and his mother are proud of him and that Jamie would be too. Landon tells him that he's sorry he never granted Jamie's wish to witness a miracle. Jamie's father tells him that she did in fact witness one: it was him. Carrying that thought, Landon goes for a walk on the docks where he narrates saying that Jamie changed him forever and that while he misses her, he believes their love is like the wind. He can't see it, but he knows it's there. The movie ends with Landon looking at the sunset, smiling.

Cast

Background and production

The inspiration for A Walk to Remember was Nicholas Sparks' sister, Danielle Sparks Lewis, who died of cancer in 2000. In a speech he gave after her death in Berlin, the author admits that "In many ways, Jamie Sullivan was my younger sister". The plot was inspired by her life; Danielle met a man who wanted to marry her, "even when he knew she was sick, even when he knew that she might not make it".[1] Both the book and film are dedicated to Danielle Sparks Lewis.

It was filmed in Wilmington, North Carolina at the same time as Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood (2002) and the TV show Dawson's Creek were being filmed there. Many of the sets were from Dawson's Creek (1998) - particularly the school, hospital and Landon's home.[2] The total shooting time was only 39 days, despite Mandy Moore being able to only work 10 hours a day because she was a minor.[2] Daryl Hannah wore a brown wig over her character. Hannah had also received a collagen injection in her lips, which went awry and caused noticeable swelling. By the end of filming, however, the symptoms were less obvious.[3]

Release

Box office

The film opened at No. 3 at the U.S. box office raking in $12,177,488 in its opening weekend, behind Snow Dogs and Black Hawk Down.

Critical reception

The film was met with generally negative reviews from critics. Rotten Tomatoes reports that 27% of 102 critics gave the film positive reviews, with an average rating of 4.1 out of 10.[4] Entertainment Weekly retitled the film "A Walk to Forget".[5] Time named it one of the top 10 worst chick flicks.[6]

However, A Walk to Remember found a warmer reception with the general public, particularly in the Christian community due to the film's moral values; as one reviewer approvingly noted, "The main character is portrayed as a Christian without being psychopathic or holier-than-thou".[7] Roger Ebert praised Mandy Moore and Shane West for their "quietly convincing" acting performances.[8] Even though not a critical success, it was a modest box office hit, earning $41,281,092 in the United States alone,[9] and a sleeper hit in Asia. The total revenue generated worldwide was $47,494,916. Despite the bad reviews, the movie was praised by audiences, has over 8.5 million likes on its Facebook page, has 79% from audiences on Rotten Tomatoes, and holds a score of 7.1 on the Internet Movie Database.

Awards

Year Ceremony Category Result
2002 MTV Movie Awards Best Breakthrough Female Performance Won (Mandy Moore)
2002 Teen Choice Awards Choice Breakout Performance - Actress Won (Mandy Moore)
2002 Teen Choice Awards Choice Chemistry Won (Moore/West)

Moore beat out fellow pop star Britney Spears, who starred in Crossroads, to win two Teen Choice Awards. At the MTV Movie Awards, Moore won the "Best Breakthrough Female Performance" for her role.

Soundtrack

The film's soundtrack features five songs by Mandy Moore and others by acts Switchfoot, Rachael Lampa and many more.

The lead song "Cry" was originally released on Moore's second studio album Mandy Moore. The soundtrack also includes two versions of Switchfoot's song "Only Hope" including the version Moore sang in the film.

Mandy Moore's manager, Jon Leshay, the musical supervisor for A Walk to Remember, "instantly wanted" Switchfoot's music to be a vital part of the film after hearing them. He later became Switchfoot's manager.[10] When they were approached to do the film, the band was unfamiliar with Moore or her music (despite her status as a pop star with several hits on the charts). Before their involvement with A Walk to Remember, Switchfoot was only recognized in their native San Diego and in Contemporary Christian music circles, but have since gained mainstream recognition, with a double platinum album, The Beautiful Letdown which included hits such as "Meant to Live" and "Dare You To Move".

2002 CD Soundtrack Tracklisting

  1. "Dare You To Move" - Patrick Loyola
  2. "Cry" - Mandy Moore
  3. "Someday We'll Know" - Mandy Moore and Jonathan Foreman – (Cover of New Radicals)
  4. "Dancin' In The Moonlight" - Toploader – (Cover of King Harvest)
  5. "Learning To Breathe" - Switchfoot
  6. "Only Hope" - Mandy Moore as character Jamie Sullivan, with dialogue by Shane West as character Landon Carter – (Cover of Switchfoot)
  7. "It's Gonna Be Love" - Mandy Moore
  8. "You" - Switchfoot
  9. "If You Believe" - Rachael Lampa
  10. "No One" - Cold
  11. "So What Does It All Mean?" - West, Gould, & Fitzgerald
  12. "Mother, We Just Can't Get Enough" - New Radicals
  13. "Cannonball" - The Breeders (©2003 Special Expanded Edition Bonus Track)
  14. "Friday On My Mind" - Noogie (©2003 Special Expanded Edition Bonus Track)
  15. "Empty Spaces" - Fuel (©2003 Special Expanded Edition Bonus Track)
  16. "Only Hope" - Switchfoot

- CD includes multi-media track of Mandy Moore video "Cry."

Complete Listing of Music in the Movie[11]
  1. "Cannonball" — The Breeders
  2. "So What Does It All Mean?" — West, Gould, & Fitzgerald
  3. "Empty Spaces" — Fuel
  4. "Lighthouse" — Mandy Moore
  5. "Friday on My Mind" — Noogie
  6. "Anything You Want" — Skycopter 9
  7. "Numb in Both Lips" — Soul Hooligan
  8. "Tapwater" — Onesidezero
  9. "If You Believe" — Rachael Lampa
  10. "No Mercy" — Extra Fancy
  11. "No One" — Cold
  12. "Enough" — Matthew Hager
  13. "Mother, We Just Can't Get Enough" — New Radicals
  14. "Only Hope" — Mandy Moore
  15. "Get Ur Freak On" — Missy Elliott
  16. "Flood" — Jars of Clay
  17. "Dancin' In The Moonlight" — Toploader
  18. "Someday We'll Know" — Mandy Moore and Jonathan Foreman
  19. "Learning to Breathe" — Switchfoot
  20. "All Mixed Up" — 311
  21. "Dare You To Move" — Switchfoot
  22. "You" — Switchfoot
  23. "It's Gonna Be Love" — Mandy Moore
  24. "Only Hope" — Switchfoot
  25. "Cry" — Mandy Moore

Comparisons to novel

While there are many similarities to the novel by Nicholas Sparks, many changes were made. On his personal website, Sparks explains the decisions behind the differences. For example, he and the producer decided to update the setting from the 1950s to the 1990s, worrying that a film set in the 50s would fail to draw teens. "To interest them," he writes, "we had to make the story more contemporary." To make the update believable, Landon's pranks and behavior are worse than they are in the novel; as Sparks notes, "the things that teen boys did in the 1950s to be considered a little 'rough' are different than what teen boys in the 1990s do to be considered 'rough.'"

Sparks and the producer also changed the play in which Landon and Jamie appear. In the novel, Hegbert wrote a Christmas play that illustrated how he once struggled as a father. However, due to time constraints, the sub-plot showing how he overcame his struggles could not be included in the film. Sparks was concerned that "people who hadn't read the book would question whether Hegbert was a good father", adding that "because he is a good father and we didn't want that question to linger, we changed the play."[12]

A significant difference is that at the end of the novel, unlike the film, it is ambiguous whether Jamie died even though during the 1950s cancer meant death. Sparks says that he had written the book knowing she would die, yet had "grown to love Jamie Sullivan", and so opted for "the solution that best described the exact feeling I had with regard to my sister at that point: namely, that I hoped she would live."[13]

References

  1. ^ Sparks, Nicholas (2000). "Background information on A Walk to Remember, from a speech given in Berlin, Germany for Heyne Verlag". http://www.nicholassparks.com/LearnMore.asp?MovieID=8#. Retrieved 2007-07-12. 
  2. ^ a b Adam Shankman (2002). "A Walk to Remember" DVD Commentary. 
  3. ^ Shankman, Adam. "Interview with Adam Shankman, Director of "A Walk to Remember" by Rebecca Murray and Fred Topel". http://movies.about.com/library/weekly/aa010902c.htm. Retrieved 2007-08-27. 
  4. ^ "A Walk to Remember Movie Reviews, Pictures". Rotten Tomatoes. http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/walk_to_remember. Retrieved 2007-07-12. 
  5. ^ Kepnes, Caroline (2002-07-12). "Reviews — A Walk to Remember". http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,305226,00.html. Retrieved 2007-07-12. 
  6. ^ Romero, Frances (May 26, 2010). "Top 10 Worst Chick Flicks - A Walk to Remember". Time. http://entertainment.time.com/2010/05/26/top-10-worst-chick-flicks/?slide=a-walk-to-remember#a-walk-to-remember. Retrieved March 28, 2012. 
  7. ^ Overstreet, Jeffrey (January 23, 2002). A Walk to Remember. Christianity Today. Archived from the original on 2008-05-03. http://web.archive.org/web/20080503054047/http://www.christianitytoday.com/movies/reviews/walktoremember.html 
  8. ^ Ebert, Roger (2002-01-25). "A Walk to Remember". Chicago Sun-Times. http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20020125/REVIEWS/201250306/1023. Retrieved 2007-07-12. 
  9. ^ "A Walk to Remember". Hollywood.com. Archived from the original on 5 July 2007. http://www.hollywood.com/movie/A_Walk_to_Remember/420885. Retrieved 2007-07-12. 
  10. ^ "Switchfoot Featured in 'A Walk To Remember'". 2002-01-21. Archived from the original on 2008-04-12. http://web.archive.org/web/20080412165632/http://www.christianitytoday.com/music/interviews/switchfootmovie-0102.html. Retrieved 2007-07-12. 
  11. ^ End Credits, A Walk to Remember, 2002
  12. ^ Sparks, Nicholas. "Nicholas Sparks on the Movie Adaptation of A Walk to Remember". Archived from the original on 2008-04-17. http://web.archive.org/web/20080417085418/http://www.nicholassparks.com/Novels/AWalkToRemember/Movie.html. Retrieved 2007-07-12. 
  13. ^ Sparks, Nicholas. "FAQ on 'A Walk to Remember' - Did Jamie Die?". Archived from the original on 2008-04-16. http://web.archive.org/web/20080416040410/http://www.nicholassparks.com/Novels/AWalkToRemember/FAQ.html#1. Retrieved 2007-07-12. 

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Mentioned in

A Walk to Remember [Bonus Tracks] (2003 Album by Original Soundtrack)
Shane West (actor)
Clayne Crawford (Actor, Drama/Thriller)
How to Deal (2003 Album by Original Soundtrack)
Lament (1993 Album by Lament)