Dear John (2010)
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A soldier and a young woman maintain a long-distance relationship through letters while he is deployed in a war zone.
The story
In 2001, Staff Sergeant John Tyree, a member of the U.S. Army Special Forces, meets Savannah Curtis, a college student, in Charleston, South Carolina. The two fall in love and decide to maintain their relationship through letters while John is deployed to Afghanistan. However, their plans for a future together are complicated by the events of September 11, which extends John's deployment. As the years pass, the two continue to communicate through letters, each navigating their own lives and challenges while remaining connected from afar.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Staff Sergeant John Tyree is deployed to Afghanistan in 2003. In 2001, he met Savannah Curtis in Charleston and they fell in love. They agreed to exchange letters during his deployment. Following the 9/11 attacks, John's deployment was extended. For two years, they communicated via letters until Savannah sent a 'Dear John' letter breaking up with him, claiming she was engaged to someone else. After being wounded in Afghanistan, John was eventually sent home, but he re-enlisted for a second term. Years later, after his father passed away, John visited Savannah and discovered she had married Tim, the man she had been close to while John was away. Tim was battling lymphoma. John eventually sold his father's coin collection to fund Tim's treatment. After Tim's death, John returned to civilian life and eventually reunited with Savannah at a coffee shop.
- First release year
- 2010
- Runtime (minutes)
- 108
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Lasse Hallström
- Writers
- Jamie Linden · screenplay
- Cast and characters
- Channing Tatum · John Tyree; Amanda Seyfried · Savannah Curtis; Henry Thomas; Scott Porter; Richard Jenkins
- Genres
- romantic drama; war drama
- Themes
- long-distance love; military service; sacrifice
- Tone and mood
- romantic; dramatic
- Premise and plot tags
- military; romance; correspondence; war
- Source material / true-story basis
- 2006 novel by Nicholas Sparks
- Content notes
- war
- Reception
- The film received mixed reviews from critics.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 28% · scale: percentage · review count: 136; Rotten Tomatoes · score: 4.50 · scale: 10
- Production trivia
- The film was the best debut for a film based on a Nicholas Sparks novel.; The film was the second-highest debut for a film opening Super Bowl weekend.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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