REVIEW: The Longest Ride

Courtesy of 20th Century Fox

Nobody buys a ticket to a Nicholas Sparks movie because they want to be surprised, or watch cinematic boundaries being pushed for the sake of art. Adaptations of the popular author’s romance novels are the multiplex equivalent of a McDonald’s value meal: you know exactly what you’re going to get, which is why you order it in the first place. But instead of a cheeseburger, fries and Coke, customers want to watch photogenic white people fall in love, overcome a handful of artificial obstacles and get together.

In the end, one of two scenarios plays out: the couple lives happily ever after or one of them dies, typically from some rare form of cancer that leaves behind a gorgeous corpse. Every once in a while, Sparks will deviate from his lucrative formula in some whacked-out, unintentionally hilarious way (no lie, one of his stories ends by revealing that the main character’s best friend is a ghost), but he generally sticks with what works.

I wouldn’t dream of divulging which narrative path The Longest Ride takes, but I’m guessing his fans will exit the theater wiping away tears and feeling like they got their money’s worth. The romantic drama stars Scott Eastwood (practically a clone of his famous dad) as pro bull rider Luke, who’s looking to make a comeback after suffering a devastating injury. But his ambition takes a backseat when he meets the beautiful and brainy Sophia (Britt Robertson), a college student getting ready to move to New York for a dream job in the art world.

They fall in love almost immediately, even though they know their relationship is probably doomed because of their conflicting goals. However, the two forget about their problems for a while after they rescue the elderly Ira (Alan Alda) from his burning car. As the young couple visits the mysterious stranger in the hospital, he captivates them with tales of his own romance with Ruth (Oona Chaplin), a gorgeous, spirited Austrian girl he meets on the eve of World War II (when he’s played by Jack Huston).

At first, the couples don’t seem to have much in common, but Ira’s story touches and inspires Luke and Sophie, who start to reconsider their life choices because of it. Because this is a Nicholas Sparks story, not everybody makes it out alive, but the plot culminates in a cute plot twist you’ll probably see coming a mile away.

It seems unnecessary to criticize a movie like The Longest Ride, which accomplishes exactly what it sets out to do – even if it doesn’t set the bar very high for itself and recycles elements of Sparks’ most famous story, The Notebook. To be honest, I spent all day dreading the screening but walked out pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed the story. I’ve definitely seen a lot worse. (Feel free to put that high praise in your TV spots, 20th Century Fox.)

The charismatic performers are mostly responsible for evoking those pleasant feelings, elevating the unoriginal material (a screenplay credited to Craig Bolotin) and creating characters who are fun to spend time with. Eastwood probably won’t be winning an Oscar any time soon, but I’m guessing most women in the audience (and quite a few guys) won’t mind very much. He’s certainly easy on the eyes and acquits himself well enough in his scenes with Robertson and Alda.

Robertson is poised to have quite the spring; her solid work here should generate plenty of well-deserved buzz and next month she costars with George Clooney in Disney’s highly anticipated Tomorrowland. Alda is also quite good – not surprising, considering he’s an acting legend – though he has a much smaller role than I expected.

But the most intriguing, emotional aspect of The Longest Ride is the story of Ira and Ruth’s younger years, told in flashbacks and anchored by compelling performances from Huston and Chapman. Their love story makes Luke and Sophie’s look downright bland in comparison, though I imagine that tends to happen when you juxtapose the drama of World War II with bull riding and art galleries.

Director George Tillman Jr. creates a gorgeous backdrop for the proceedings, capturing some gorgeous nature shots and giving each time period its own distinct look and feel. Now if we could just do something about all those generic pop songs on the soundtrack.

Reviewing The Longest Ride is some of the most unnecessary writing I’ll ever do in my life. People who love Nicholas Sparks’ movies are going to see this no matter what I think, and people who hate them will avoid it like the plague (even though I’m of the opinion that this one’s not so bad). So, to that rare individual who’s on the fence about seeing the author’s latest adaptation: take in a matinee and enjoy the cheese.

The Longest Ride is rated PG-13 for some sexuality, partial nudity, and some war and sports action.

Grade: B-