When it comes to suspenseful films with a plot twist at the end, film adaptations of Nicholas Sparks novels do not exactly come to mind. Don’t worry though, “Safe Haven,” the newest installment in the Nicholas Sparks film franchise, does not lack any of the sappy, tear-jerking, ooey-gooey romance that women everywhere seemingly desire.

“Safe Haven” opens with the main character, Katie (Julianne Hough “Footloose”), fleeing a violent scene in present day Boston. Katie escapes Boston via greyhound and soon finds herself in a small town on the coast of North Carolina.

Fearful of being found and mistrusting others due to her past, it is not until Katie meets her awkward yet lovable neighbor Jo (Cobie Smulders “How I Met Your Mother”) that she begins to open up and develop relationships with the townsfolk.

Katie soon develops a romantic relationship with local widower, Alex (Josh Duhamel “Transformers”), and is soon able to forget about her traumatic past until it comes back to haunt her, and Joe’s character soon proves to be the biggest, most unexpected and confusing plot twist this year has to offer.

When it comes to the casting, it is no surprise that the star-studded cast shines. Hough and Duhamel’s chemistry in the film is undeniable, electric and completely believable to the audience. Hough proves that she can do much more than just sing and dance by demonstrating flawless acting skills, enabling the audience to not only believe her characters back story but also develop a strong emotional bond with her at the same time. When it comes to proving one’s versatility as an actor, Josh Duhamel breaks his action movie typecast through taking on a more realistic and sensitive roll.
However, the most impressive and emotion-invoking character was that of Mimi Kirkland, who takes on the roll of Lexie, Alex’s young and adorable daughter. Kirkland makes the audience awe and arguably fall in love more with her than the leads.

Overall, the movie was well done, the only downside being the twist ending, which is not only a tearjerker but a completely confusing and blindsiding scene. Despite this scene, well-renowned director Lasse Hallström (“Chocolat” “Casanova”) takes a cliché plot and a star-studded cast and creates a breathtaking cinematic experience filled with vivid cinematography of the stunning North Carolina coast, creating a story that is timeless.