Dear John, the latest Nicholas Sparks film adaptation, works familiar territory: ooey-gooey love. Critics aren't falling for the tale of long-distance romance between an American soldier stationed in the Middle East (Channing Tatum) and his dream girl back home (Amanda Seyfried).
- Tom Horgen of the Minneapolis Star Tribune decries the movie's "Sparksian schmaltz," panning director Lasse Hallstrom for leaving the audience with "a giggle-worthy mess."