![]() ![]() Instead of being a passionate, tear-filled fight, it's an amicable parting of the ways. There are no street side screaming matches, no ice cream cones shoved in each other's faces, no bickering. Instead of focusing on, or even mentioning, disagreements between the two, the author focuses on the growth and maturity of their love. That doesn't seem to be the message Sparks's original book was trying to send. It says to the viewer, like so many other toxic on-screen or in-book relationships do, that strong love, true love, is born out of conflict. The movie again reinforces the dangerous notion that relationships are stronger if the people in them have gone through hell and back with or for one another. ![]() In its portrayal of their conflicts, the film pairs each fight with upbeat music and subsequent shots of them making up, so it appears the fighting is romantic. They fight constantly, openly argue in front of others, and even get into physical altercations on the street. In the film, after Noah finally convinces Allie to go on a date with him - again, by threatening to harm himself and possibly others below by jumping of a damn Ferris wheel - its unsurprising to learn that their relationship is tumultuous, to say the very least. The movie adaptation of The Notebook doesn't stop tainting the original love story at the carnival, not even close. So why then did Hollywood decide to change a seemingly innocent love story into one filled with volatility, abuse, and obsession? As they say in the business, drama sells, but it also reinforces dangerous stereotypes about gender dynamics and power structures in romantic relationships. From that sweet, antic-free evening, a stable and heartfelt relationship is born, one without all the fighting, crying, and jealousy you see play out on screen. In fact, in the book, there is far less drama: Noah and Allie have a normal interaction when they meet, and spend the entire night together at the carnival, no Ferris wheel stunts needed. In Sparks' original novel, the start of Allie and Noah's doesn't play out in the same way. He essentially bullies Allie into dating him, a common trope in movies and books that buy into the "it's all about the chase" ideology that puts women in incredibly uncomfortable, even dangerous situations. Not only is Noah continually trying to pressure Allie into dating him, but his threats on the Ferris wheel reinforces the toxic belief that when men act badly, dangerously, or irresponsibly, the women they love (or are attracted to) are to blame. Upon closer look, though, they can be seen for what they really are: coercion, harassment, and emotional abuse. It took reading Sparks' original novel, and growing up a bit, to recognize, but now that I see Noah for what he is - an obsessive creep with a penchant for dramatic, unwanted gestures and an inability to take no for an answer - I can't stop thinking about my original interpretation of The Notebook and why I so wrongly believed it to be a true love story.Īt first glance and from far away, Noah's actions seem like a grand romantic gesture, one that would many anyone swoon. But underneath Gosling's washboard abs and McAdam's winning smile lurks a much more problematic narrative. If you, like me, saw Rachel McAdams and Ryan Gosling's movie version of The Notebook first, chances are it swept you off your feet, and how could it not? On the surface, it's a sweet love story about a second chance romance between two attractive characters you certainly don't mind looking. Listen, I understand this might not be the most popular opinion. In fact, I think it's finally time we talk about how Noah from The Notebook was actually a total creep. But then I actually read Nicholas Sparks's novel, and without Ryan Gosling's dreamy face and gorgeous body to distract me, I quickly realized the romantic hero of the film, my romantic hero, wasn't a hero at all. For the rest of the summer, I obsessed over the incredible love story of Noah and Allie, so much so that I even made my mom take me to the bookstore so I could get my hands on the original source material. I walked out of the theater, still wiping tears from my naïve little eyes, thinking that The Notebook was perhaps the most romantic thing I had ever seen. Young, impressionable, and obsessed with the notion of true love and second chances, I saw the movie in its opening weekend with a group of girlfriends who sobbed during it as often as I did. When The Notebook hit theaters in the summer of 2004, I was just about to enter my freshman year in high school. ![]()
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