Britt Robertson (The First Time) and Scott Eastwood (Fury) star in the latest Nicholas Sparks adaptation The Longest Ride. The film is billed as a love story about “the lives of a young couple [that] intertwine with a much older man (Alan Alda) as he reflects back on a lost love while he’s trapped in an automobile crash.” Based on the first trailer, however, it is clearly much more.
With a small hint of his father Clint’s western roots, Eastwood plays a bull rider living life on the edge. Although this seems to initially bring his and Robertson’s characters together, it also may be one of the factor’s that tears them apart, along with the paralleled narrative of the 1940s couple.
Directed by George Tillman Jr. (Notorious), this doesn’t completely read like a typical Sparks story. It does contain the tried and true elements: an older couple set up against a similar – if not identical – younger couple, also seen in The Notebook, a tragedy providing a major turning point, also seen in almost every Sparks adaptation, as well as plenty of romantic fodder. Regardless, The Longest Ride is clearly attempting something a bit different. Aside from Eastwood’s intriguing employment, the trailer suggests a more bleak or realistic perspective of the romantic story line. It also teases a bit of a 50 Shades of Grey tone with its use of Banks’ “Waiting Game” heard in the first half of the preview.
Robertson can next be seen starring alongside Eddie Murphy in Cook and George Clooney in Disney’s Tomorrowland. Eastwood will lead a western called Diablo, which he is also producing.
Also check out The Longest Ride poster below, which opts out of the typical “frozen right before they kiss” pose for something a bit more playful.
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