“The Lucky One” entertains as romantic drama

By Maggie Robak
Opinion Editor

In the romantic drama genre, Nicholas Sparks is a veteran. For years, many of his novels have been adapted into successful films like “A Walk to Remember” and “The Notebook.”

“The Lucky One” now joins the ranks of Sparks’ box-office hits. While the movie is at times a bit melodramatic, it proves to be a very enjoyable film.
While in Iraq, soldier Logan Thibault (Zac Efron) comes across a picture of a girl and stops to pick it up, a decision that saves his life from an incoming bomb. He then sets out on a quest to find the girl in the picture and thank her for saving his life.

Logan succeeds in finding Beth (Taylor Schilling), who lives in a small town in Louisiana with her grandmother (Blythe Danner) and son Ben (Riley Thomas Stewart). After getting a job with the family, Logan’s relationship with Beth grows, despite the many obstacles in their way.

Schilling and Efron overall gave very exaggerated performances. While Schilling was at times very appropriate and even brilliant, the majority of her scenes were too dramatic.

In contrast, Efron seemed to have the exact opposite problem. Efron was almost void of all emotion. While he did give off a mysterious and brooding feeling, he failed to show his vulnerable side when it would have given his character more depth.

While the pair may not have been stellar individually, they balance each other out. Their chemistry makes their growing relationship more believable.
The plotline of the film, although a bit formulaic, was fairly unique. While some of the major elements of the story are standard for a Nicholas Sparks movie, “The Lucky One” puts a different and interesting spin on the ordinary romantic drama.

One of the saving graces of the movie was the sound track. The track consisted of many different artists, such as Joshua Radin, whose music added an emotional depth to scenes.

“The Lucky One” is an interesting film that will leave its audiences satisfied. “The Lucky One” is rated PG-13 and is playing in select theaters nationwide.