A Walk to Remember Movie

The movie begins with heavy, metal music that indicates something troublesome is about to happen. Unlike many movies, the movie doesn't begin with an establishing or long shot. Rather, it begins with the camera zoomed into a black sports car that one of the teenagers is driving. There appears to be low-key lighting used to set that the scene is suppose to be happening in the evening time. In addition, the camera's movement of pan is used to quickly highlight the close-ups of the few teenagers that are present in the scene. A few minutes after the teenagers arrive, another car pulls up which appears to be another one in their crew. When he is driving the car towards them, there is a track/dolly used for the camera because the camera is moving backwards while the car is moving forward. When the guy steps out from the car, there is a medium shot used which not only shows his facial expressions but also shows the type of clothing he is wearing to give the audience of the type of character he may be.

The crew is planning a prank on the new guy to make him jump into a pool in a no-go area in the junkyard. When the guy is walking up the ladder to jump into the pool, the camera is at a high angle shot not only to indicate he is walking up but to also show he is vulnerable because he is very nervous at the time. The newbie jumps into the pool but stays for a while down there because he's drowning. The crew's reaction is shown using close-ups to show their expressions that they are frightened because this guy may be dead. Then, a police car arrives and the gang all hop into their gang except Landon who stayed behind to sort-of help him out. However, soon Landon jumps into his car and drives off. While he is driving in circles trying to figure out his way out of the junkyard, the camera is at a long shot that shows the car which happens to be very miniature finding its way through cuts and corners. When Landon is then driving, attempting to escape from the police, a close-up is also used which is very relevant because he is severely sweating. The police does catch him eventually and when he does, it is shown in a point of view shot (the police's p.o.v.) as he looks at Landon who appears vulnerable and busted. As the scene transitions, there is no dissolve or fade. Rather, it shows a random person on a boat at night.

The next scene is set up with an establishing shot that shows Landon's house. There is a tree that is close to the camera, one that isn't too far away from it, and one that is far. It also shows 1/8 of a car and the garden. The mother and Landon begin to have a conversation about his recent behaviour. As they are conversing,  their conversation is shown in a eyeline match to show the continuity of their conversation. For example, Landon would talk looking at the camera although the viewers know he is actually looking at the mother. Vice versa, the mother would be looking at Landon's direction but it's actually at the camera. The benefit of doing that is because it shows the proximity because the audience is able to see the mother's face or Landon's face alone while they are individually talking rather than having them in the same frame.

Towards the next scene, a bell rings to show the transition. It then shows the Reverend speaking at Mass. Then, Jamie is introduced by she singing a soft song as part of the choir. That was particularly nice because the song reflects Jamie's personality which is angelic, a characteristic of the song. A medium shot is used to give the audience a sense of what kind of character she is. After the mass scene, there is a jump cut placed in which the scene is now at the high school the characters attend. A technique I found really cool is when Landon was in the principal's office and the principal sets 4 beers in front of him. It was kind-of an over-the-shoulder shot because the camera is behind the beers and peeking through the spaces between them and still manages to show Landon's face.

On the bus, Jamie sits next to Landon as they are coming home from a tutoring center which is where Landon has to go for his punishment. As Jamie begins to speak about a subject that doesn't appeal to Landon, a reaction shot is placed because Landon fires back/yells at Jamie and she reacts to the outburst. At another day, Landon's friend drops him off at the school to go to the school play rehearsal, another of Landon's punishments. As they are conversing, there is an over-the-shoulder shot featuring the friend's face over the shoulders of Landon. Then, there is a jump cut where the drama teacher is talking and her face is shown in an extreme close-up from her eyebrows to slightly below her mouth to show her excitement over the school play.

One evening, Jamie goes to the cemetery with her telescope to look at the stars. Landon sees her while driving and stops the car then follows her. She tells him to take a look and when he's looking inside, a point of view shot is used because as he's looking, the audience is seeing the stars as his own image. Therefore, we're invited into his head/eyes. Landon embarrasses Jamie in public in front of his friends to look "cool". When he goes to Jamie's house for play rehearsals, Jamie steps outside of the house and it becomes an over-the shoulder shot to allow the audience to focus on Landon's words then Jamie's reaction as he apologizes and reasons with her.

At the play, there is a part where Jamie begins singing. To show how beautiful she now is outwardly, the filming technique is an arc because the camera spins in a 360 degrees around her as she is singing. In addition, a matched cut is used in the scene because it will show her singing then all of a sudden there is a slight dissolve and it shows her face close-up to show continuity. Back at school, Jamie is publicly embarrassed in front of the entire school. As her heart is pumping and her mind is racing, there is music in the background that demonstrates that her mind is racing. Also, the camera zooms in on her face so that it is an extreme close-up and a reaction shot.

After the two fall in love and admit their love for each other, Jamie admits that she has leukemia and that she is dying. Landon then drives to the other side of town to his dad's house, the doctor to see if he can treat Jamie. The dad says it's not possible immediately because he's a cardiologist and would have to review her cases & talk to her doctor. The frustrated and angry Landon gets in his car and drives back home. As he is driving, his face is shown as a close-up to show how angry and sad he is feeling for not having a cure for his loved one. Soon, Landon overcomes his fears a little bit and start doing things that would make Jamie happy while she is still alive. For example, he asks his mother to teach him how to dance. When he learns how to dance, they are dancing in Jamie's balcony and the camera is at a low angle shot to signify that it is important and significant to the couple.

Jamie soon becomes very sick and is taken to the hospital. There is a scene in the hospital where Landon lies down on the bed besides Jamie and mise-en-scene is used because the entire room is dark but there is lighting around Jamie's face and Landon's face and the camera focuses on that. It establishes that the atmosphere is warm and there really is love between the two.

Differences:
In the movie, it's not told from an extended flashback. It's more of a high school story and the action happening at the time. It never has the older Landon's voice stepping in to narrate or tell what lesson he has learned thus far. Also, the plot has some differences that are quite noticeable. For example, Landon's character and crowd/friends is more incorporated. Another difference is the way that Jamie and Landon got to know each other. In the book, Landon asked her to the dance as a last resort after being elected Student Council President. In the movie, his family history of politics is never mentioned (his father is a politician in the book gone 9 months of the year...in the movie, the parents are divorced and the father is a doctor) and Jamie and Landon got connected through the school play. There is also no cases of collecting jars or orphanage in the movie. Rather, Landon shows that he is changing by visiting the hospital which the newbie was sent to after being injured in the prank. He also shows change by the music he listens to. Instead of listening to the rap/hip-hop he used to listen to, he began listening to Jamie's kind of music like country. Another thing Landon has done for Jamie in the movie is making all her dreams come true : naming a star after her, allowing her to be in two places at once, giving her a dream wedding at the church her mum was married in, and giving her a tattoo.

Other differences I observed is the ending. In the book, the ending leaves more mystery to allow the readers to infer what the "miracle" was...if she survived or the miracle is changing Landon for the better. In the movie, she clearly dies and when she does, Landon is now 22, has gotten into medical school and is getting on with his life.
The title "A Walk to Remember" is more reflected in the novel than in the movie. In the book, it is more significant because Jamie is in a wheel chair and very feeble so the fact that she is walking down the aisle slowly but strong leaves everyone in the church fascinated. In the movie, when Jamie dies, he simply says he'll never forget the way she looked at him as she walked down the aisle so it isn't as significant.

Overall thought:

I thought the movie was awesome. It was an adaptation film so there are differences but overall the plot and sense of the theme remained the same. I'm a fan of Mandy Moore and Shane West reminds me of Zac Efron so it made it more exciting to watch. The cast was well cast and I didn't witness any bad acting which made the film better. I definitely will watch the film many more times and it still will feel like it's the first time I'm watching it. The director, Adam Shankman, did a nice job because I noticed a lot of camera techniques and was thereby able to use to film terms.
Although the book made more "sense" than the film in the aspect that the reader was able to fully understand their love for each other and how it began, the film was also enjoyable. In the book, they spent a while together before they fell in love. However, of course the director wouldn't want to make a five hour film so we still get the point that they went through some phases before falling in love but it wasn't as clear. Regardless, I would recommend this fabulous film to anyone who is a fan of the book or Nicholas Sparks or just plainly likes chick flicks/romance movies/enjoys crying.

Sweetest line & Last line of the movie: "But her love was like the wind. I can't see it but I can feel it." :)