Alright, first I shall note that I have not read the book. I hadn't even seen a trailer for this film before I had gone. I went with my mother and sister who had both read the book and more than enjoyed it. I really had no idea what this story was even about. I walked in with a completely open mind.
The acting in this movie was wonderful. On almost every account also. Greg Kinnear was amazing in the movie and the boy who played the son I was even impressed with. Miley Cyrus seemed to be the only exception. I hated her acting from the moment the movie began. As the movie went forth, I started to change my mind at times. She had no problem changing it back though. She was so off and on through out the entire film. She looked confused at times and when she actually had to show emotion like anger it was as if she didn't know what to do. But enough of that.
The story at times seemed rushed and misunderstood. Everything was predictable. The portions of the movie where I actually felt as though I was supposed to cry seemed to happen so fast that I felt like I didn't have time to understand how the characters felt. There were major holes in the plot that I still had questions about and it drove me nuts at times. There were a couple of times where I actually felt like I was enjoying it but they came and went quickly also. The whole movie, and please remember that I absolutely knew nothing about this story before hand, I felt like I had nothing to look forward to.
In the end I would say that I wouldn't suggest paying to see this in theaters. I definitely wouldn't buy it on DVD and I probably wouldn't even recommend renting it later. If by some chance you get an opportunity to see it for free and you're curious then go for it. I'd also like to mention that, from what I understand from my mother and my sister, this movie completely differs from the book so don't expect what you've read and definitely don't get to excited for this.
