‘Safe Haven’
was released in cinemas across the UK on 3rd March and was released
on 7th May 2013 on DVD and Blu-Ray across the nation. It’s a
Romance/Thriller or RomDram film based on the 2010 novel of the same name by Nicholas Sparks and truly is a blend of
its two primary genres from the off. Although the £28 million, film was widely
criticised by critics, particularly in the States, it made over $95 million at
the box office.
Filmed in North Carolina and Louisiana, ‘Safe Haven’ was directed by Swedish RomDram
master Lasse Hallström, who was also
responsible for hits such as ‘Dear John’
(2010) and ‘Chocolat’ (2000). He also
directed over 30 of ABBA’s music
videos in the 1970s and 80s along with ‘ABBA:
The Movie’ (1977). The film follows
protagonist Katie as she flees her home hunted by Police, reaches a small,
idyllic town- Southport, North Carolina and meets a hunky widower Alex Wheatley, (Josh Duhamel). He’s a convenience store owner with two
young children and, predictably the two begin a slow-burning love fair.
In true keeping with a mystery, the slush-infested movie
begins with the hastened escape of Katie played by actress/country
singer/ballroom dancer Julianne Hough
his opening scene also makes it clear how creative the film is, mainly due to
the dark, gloomy shades of the frames. The cuts between scenes make the emotion
and content of each one stand out from the next, assisted by the variety of
editing speeds, styles and sumptuous settings. Each note of tense soundtrack
and bleeping siren builds up the tension and keeps the audience questioning the
film’s plot.
The abundance of greenery and seagull-overhaul of
the coastal village Katie settles in is the perfect partner to panned-out shots
of scenery and thought-provoking moments. However predictable the element of
romance is, its almost comforting how inevitable it seems, with retains Oscar
front-runner Hallström key component
of destiny. Its simplistic structure fails to create the spark necessary for a
romance flick; in fact it jumps seemingly randomly from the two leads and the
Police’s work throughout.
In terms of acting performances, the best, most
profound offering come from cute-as-a-button Mimi Kirkland and Noah Lomax
who play Josh’s children Lexi and Josh, along with ‘How I Met Your Mother’s’ Cobi Smulders as Jo. As the opening of ‘Safe Haven’ drags like a heavy
suitcase, it’s clear Hallström is not
familiar with playing out the tension in his work, because he offers the
audience pointless nuggets of information and mis-directions. His use of
flashback is so pointless its almost patronising; basically verifying Katie’s
past, which the audience are already aware of. It’s also astounding how much
she can afford in terms of clothing, housing and general living expenses given
she escaped her old home and violent husband with nothing but a plastic bag of
clothing. Not to mention how unperturbed she seems by the situation with her
husband. Its portrayal of romance is limp and unoriginal, with the most
stirring moment being when the two leads’ hands creep ever closer together.
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| "Fluffy romance" |
Fundamentally, this piece of cinematic confection
drags in wait of some unavoidable twist that, of course, occurs towards its
conclusion. It’s the sickly sweet settings and blossoming relationships
combined with twinkly guitar driven soundtracks that drive ‘Safe Haven’ and illustrates the effect moving to Hollywood has had
on Hallström’s visions. The 115
minute flick is perfect example of why films centred around the development of
human relationships and the tensions and conflicts within them need to include
impeccably entwined storylines. ‘Safe
Haven’ fails to do this and instead, latches onto scattered flashbacks and
mediocre scriptwriting.
Many sickly sweet scenes make you resent the
couple’s relationship whether you’re in one yourself or not- the depiction of
PDA, however is impeccable. Some scenes also mirror Nick Cassavetes’‘The Notebook’ (2004), including en enchanting
canoe ride and the couple even kissing among the rushing backdrop of the
debauched ocean. Even the theatrical poster of ‘Safe Haven’ rips of ‘The
Notebook’, down to the female protagonist’s selection of t-shirt shade. It’s
only the revelation of a supernatural element that not only differs from ‘The Notebook’, but also tarnishes the
realism of the film.
Reckless alcoholic Tierney shatters the perfection
of his wife’s new life and the illustration of a one-sided, severely violent
relationship is mesmerising, especially in terms of realism. The violent based
sections of the film are warmly welcomed due to the dull headway of it and
really picks up its pace and the pieces left behind by poorly-acted and written
lovey-dovey scenes. However, this ending does read somewhat like a poorly
built-up episode of ‘Desperate
Housewives’, without the well-developed, well-liked characters and
settings.
The blend of fluffy romance and theatrical tension
in this film and proves you can’t always predict how worthy of your time a DVD
purchase will be, despite a renowned director, author or all-star cast. As it
shifts between fairy-tale, supernatural thriller and mystery, ‘Safe Haven’ is a lacklustre embraces a
shameless twist and fails to gain any substantial momentum.
3/5
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