Nights in Rodanthe
Encyclopedia
Nights in Rodanthe is a 2008
American
/Australian
film adaptation
of the novel with the same name
by Nicholas Sparks
. The film stars Richard Gere
and Diane Lane
in their third screen collaboration after Unfaithful (2002) and The Cotton Club
(1984). The film is rated PG-13 by the MPAA
for "some sensuality" and was released on September 26, 2008. It was filmed in the small seaside village of Rodanthe
, the northernmost village of the inhabited areas of Hatteras Island
as well as North Topsail Beach, North Carolina
. The film's soundtrack features "Love Remains the Same", a song written by Gavin Rossdale
for his 2008 debut solo album, despite the fact that it does not appear in the film.
) tells his estranged wife Adrienne (Diane Lane
) that he wants to move back home. Adrienne says she needs time and space to think. It is made clear that Jack left his family for another woman.
Adrienne drives to Rodanthe, North Carolina
to a friend's bed-and-breakfast for the weekend. The house is rustic, romantic and right on the beach and partially in the surf at high tide.
There is only one guest for the weekend, Paul (Richard Gere
), a surgeon who arrives at the inn with his own emotional baggage
. He has flashbacks of a surgery which ended tragically. The family of the patient, who live in Rodanthe, is suing him.
A storm moves in and the two team up to protect the inn. They dine together, share stories and eventually turn to each other for emotional comfort. A genuine romance is born. With Adrienne’s advice and moral support, Paul opens up to the patient’s widower and in doing so faces his own pain.
Paul very reluctantly leaves Adrienne and Rodanthe to fly to South America, where his estranged son Mark (James Franco
) lives, to reconcile with him. Paul carries guilt for passing up a relationship with his son in favor of his career. He helps him practice medicine and take care of the natives there.
During their separation Adrienne and Paul exchange numerous handwritten letters expressing their longing to be with each other once again. Unfortunately, Paul is killed in a flash mudslide before he is able to be with her again. Mark arrives at Adrienne's door with the tragic news, a box of Paul's personal belongings and gratitude to Adrienne for giving him back his father.
Adrienne ultimately is left all alone with her nearly unbearable grief. There is nobody else available to offer her solace and comfort.
She finally is granted a respite from her heart-rending sadness when, during a solitary sojourn along the beach on a strikingly beautiful day, she looks up to see a small herd of magnificent wild horses
go thundering on by her.
. According to review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes
, the critical consensus holds that the film is "derivative and schmaltzy" and "strongly mottled by contrivances that even the charisma of stars Diane Lane and Richard Gere can't repair". The site rates the movie as "rotten", with a score of 29% based on 106 reviews. Metacritic scored the film as 39/100, with "generally negative reviews", based on 26 reviews.
Although the movie was critically panned, it grossed $84,375,061 worldwide.
The Times of London included Nights in Rodanthe on its 100 Worst Films of 2008 list.
2008 in film
This is a list of all major films made in 2008.-Highest-grossing films:Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top grossing films that were first released in the USA in 2008...
American
Cinema of the United States
The cinema of the United States, also known as Hollywood, has had a profound effect on cinema across the world since the early 20th century. Its history is sometimes separated into four main periods: the silent film era, classical Hollywood cinema, New Hollywood, and the contemporary period...
/Australian
Cinema of Australia
Cinema of Australia, more commonly referred to as the Australian film industry, refers to the system of production, distribution, and exhibition of films in Australia. Film production commenced in Australia in 1906 with the production of The Story of the Kelly Gang, the earliest feature film made...
film adaptation
Film adaptation
Film adaptation is the transfer of a written work to a feature film. It is a type of derivative work.A common form of film adaptation is the use of a novel as the basis of a feature film, but film adaptation includes the use of non-fiction , autobiography, comic book, scripture, plays, and even...
of the novel with the same name
Nights in Rodanthe (novel)
Nights in Rodanthe is a novel by American writer Nicholas Sparks in September 2002.Set in Rodanthe, North Carolina, the story follows the romance of a divorced mother, Adrienne Willis, and a divorced father and surgeon, Paul Flanner...
by Nicholas Sparks
Nicholas Sparks (author)
Nicholas Charles Sparks is an internationally-bestselling American novelist and screenwriter. He has 16 published novels, with thematic ideas that include cancer, death and love. Six have been adapted to film, including Message in a Bottle, A Walk to Remember, The Notebook, Nights in Rodanthe,...
. The film stars Richard Gere
Richard Gere
Richard Tiffany Gere is an American actor. He began acting in the 1970s, playing a supporting role in Looking for Mr. Goodbar, and a starring role in Days of Heaven. He came to prominence in 1980 for his role in the film American Gigolo, which established him as a leading man and a sex symbol...
and Diane Lane
Diane Lane
Diane Lane is an American film actress.Born and raised in New York City, Lane made her screen debut at the age of 13 in George Roy Hill's 1979 film A Little Romance, starring opposite Sir Laurence Olivier. Soon after, she was featured on the cover of Time magazine...
in their third screen collaboration after Unfaithful (2002) and The Cotton Club
The Cotton Club (film)
The Cotton Club is a 1984 crime-drama, centered on a famed Harlem jazz club of the 1930s, the Cotton Club.The movie was co-written and directed by Francis Ford Coppola, choreographed by Henry LeTang, and starred Richard Gere, Diane Lane, and Gregory Hines...
(1984). The film is rated PG-13 by the MPAA
Motion Picture Association of America
The Motion Picture Association of America, Inc. , originally the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America , was founded in 1922 and is designed to advance the business interests of its members...
for "some sensuality" and was released on September 26, 2008. It was filmed in the small seaside village of Rodanthe
Rodanthe, North Carolina
Rodanthe is an unincorporated community located in Dare County, North Carolina, on Hatteras Island, part of North Carolina's Outer Banks. Rodanthe, along with Waves and Salvo, are part of the settlement of Chicamacomico...
, the northernmost village of the inhabited areas of Hatteras Island
Hatteras Island
Hatteras Island is a barrier island located off the North Carolina coast. Dividing the Atlantic Ocean and the Pamlico Sound, it runs parallel to the coast, forming a bend at Cape Hatteras. It is part of North Carolina's Outer Banks and includes the towns of Rodanthe, Waves, Salvo, Avon, Buxton,...
as well as North Topsail Beach, North Carolina
North Topsail Beach, North Carolina
North Topsail Beach is a town in Onslow County, North Carolina, United States. The 2008 estimated population was 955. It is located on Topsail Island.North Topsail Beach is part of the Jacksonville, North Carolina Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...
. The film's soundtrack features "Love Remains the Same", a song written by Gavin Rossdale
Gavin Rossdale
Gavin McGregor Rossdale is an English musician, known as the lead singer and rhythm guitarist of the rock band Bush as well as an actor. Following Bush's separation in 2002, which lasted for eight years, he was the lead singer and guitarist for Institute, and later began a solo career. He...
for his 2008 debut solo album, despite the fact that it does not appear in the film.
Plot
While picking up his son and daughter for a weekend visit, Jack (Christopher MeloniChristopher Meloni
Christopher Peter Meloni is an American actor. He is best known for his television roles as NYPD Detective Elliot Stabler on the NBC police drama Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, and as inmate Chris Keller on the HBO prison drama Oz.-Early life:Meloni was born the youngest of three children in...
) tells his estranged wife Adrienne (Diane Lane
Diane Lane
Diane Lane is an American film actress.Born and raised in New York City, Lane made her screen debut at the age of 13 in George Roy Hill's 1979 film A Little Romance, starring opposite Sir Laurence Olivier. Soon after, she was featured on the cover of Time magazine...
) that he wants to move back home. Adrienne says she needs time and space to think. It is made clear that Jack left his family for another woman.
Adrienne drives to Rodanthe, North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
to a friend's bed-and-breakfast for the weekend. The house is rustic, romantic and right on the beach and partially in the surf at high tide.
There is only one guest for the weekend, Paul (Richard Gere
Richard Gere
Richard Tiffany Gere is an American actor. He began acting in the 1970s, playing a supporting role in Looking for Mr. Goodbar, and a starring role in Days of Heaven. He came to prominence in 1980 for his role in the film American Gigolo, which established him as a leading man and a sex symbol...
), a surgeon who arrives at the inn with his own emotional baggage
Emotional baggage
Emotional baggage can be defined as 'Painful memories, mistrust and hurt carried around from past sexual or emotional rejection'.It is an image of 'a big sack that you carry around with you at all times...[with] every disappointment, trauma, and wrong that you've ever experienced....This image, the...
. He has flashbacks of a surgery which ended tragically. The family of the patient, who live in Rodanthe, is suing him.
A storm moves in and the two team up to protect the inn. They dine together, share stories and eventually turn to each other for emotional comfort. A genuine romance is born. With Adrienne’s advice and moral support, Paul opens up to the patient’s widower and in doing so faces his own pain.
Paul very reluctantly leaves Adrienne and Rodanthe to fly to South America, where his estranged son Mark (James Franco
James Franco
James Edward Franco is an American actor, film director, producer, screenwriter, author, painter, performance artist and instructor at New York University. He left college in order to pursue acting and started off his career by making guest appearances on television series in the 1990s...
) lives, to reconcile with him. Paul carries guilt for passing up a relationship with his son in favor of his career. He helps him practice medicine and take care of the natives there.
During their separation Adrienne and Paul exchange numerous handwritten letters expressing their longing to be with each other once again. Unfortunately, Paul is killed in a flash mudslide before he is able to be with her again. Mark arrives at Adrienne's door with the tragic news, a box of Paul's personal belongings and gratitude to Adrienne for giving him back his father.
Adrienne ultimately is left all alone with her nearly unbearable grief. There is nobody else available to offer her solace and comfort.
She finally is granted a respite from her heart-rending sadness when, during a solitary sojourn along the beach on a strikingly beautiful day, she looks up to see a small herd of magnificent wild horses
Banker Horse
The Banker horse is a breed of feral horse living on the islands of North Carolina's Outer Banks. It is small, hardy, and has a docile temperament...
go thundering on by her.
Cast
- Diane LaneDiane LaneDiane Lane is an American film actress.Born and raised in New York City, Lane made her screen debut at the age of 13 in George Roy Hill's 1979 film A Little Romance, starring opposite Sir Laurence Olivier. Soon after, she was featured on the cover of Time magazine...
as Adrienne Willis - Richard GereRichard GereRichard Tiffany Gere is an American actor. He began acting in the 1970s, playing a supporting role in Looking for Mr. Goodbar, and a starring role in Days of Heaven. He came to prominence in 1980 for his role in the film American Gigolo, which established him as a leading man and a sex symbol...
as Dr. Paul Flanner - James FrancoJames FrancoJames Edward Franco is an American actor, film director, producer, screenwriter, author, painter, performance artist and instructor at New York University. He left college in order to pursue acting and started off his career by making guest appearances on television series in the 1990s...
as Dr. Mark Flanner (uncredited) - Scott GlennScott GlennTheodore Scott Glenn is an American actor. His roles have included Wes Hightower in Urban Cowboy , astronaut Alan Shepard in The Right Stuff ,Emmett in Silverado , Commander Bart Mancuso in The Hunt for Red October , Jack Crawford in The Silence of the Lambs and The Wise Man in Sucker Punch -Early...
as Robert Torrelson - Christopher MeloniChristopher MeloniChristopher Peter Meloni is an American actor. He is best known for his television roles as NYPD Detective Elliot Stabler on the NBC police drama Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, and as inmate Chris Keller on the HBO prison drama Oz.-Early life:Meloni was born the youngest of three children in...
as Jack Willis - Viola DavisViola DavisViola Davis is an American actress.Known primarily as a stage actress, Davis won a Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play and a Drama Desk Award for her role in King Hedley II . She won a Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play for her role in the...
as Jean - Pablo SchreiberPablo SchreiberPablo Tell Schreiber is an American actor known for his dramatic stage work and for his portrayal of the Polish-American character Nick Sobotka on HBO's Baltimore drug-related crime drama The Wire. He was nominated for a Tony Award for his performance in Awake and Sing! on Broadway...
as Charlie Torrelson - Mae WhitmanMae WhitmanMae Margaret Whitman is an American television, movie and voice actress. She is known for her role as Ann Veal in the TV series Arrested Development, her role as Amber on the TV series Parenthood, her role as Roxy Richter in Scott Pilgrim vs...
as Amanda Willis - Charlie TahanCharlie TahanCharles "Charlie" Tahan is an American child actor.Tahan was born and raised in Glen Rock, New Jersey. His sister is actress Daisy Tahan, and he has an older brother named Willie as well. Tahan portrayed Ethan in I Am Legend, appeared in Burning Bright, and co-starred with Zac Efron in the 2010...
as Danny Willis
Critical reception and box office
The film opened at #2 at the North American Box office making $13,418,454 in its opening weekend behind Eagle EyeEagle Eye
Eagle Eye is a 2008 thriller film directed by D. J. Caruso and starring Shia LaBeouf and Michelle Monaghan. The two portray a young man and a single mother who are brought together and coerced by an anonymous caller into carrying out a plan by a possible terrorist organization...
. According to review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
, the critical consensus holds that the film is "derivative and schmaltzy" and "strongly mottled by contrivances that even the charisma of stars Diane Lane and Richard Gere can't repair". The site rates the movie as "rotten", with a score of 29% based on 106 reviews. Metacritic scored the film as 39/100, with "generally negative reviews", based on 26 reviews.
Although the movie was critically panned, it grossed $84,375,061 worldwide.
The Times of London included Nights in Rodanthe on its 100 Worst Films of 2008 list.