Movie review: The Lucky One

I had a free screening pass to The Lucky One, which is based on a Nicholas Sparks book and I would say it's a lot like one would expect for a Nicholas Sparks book... some romance, some tragedy, some destiny and a cute boy. I am quite the admirer of Zac Efron and he's fine in the role as an ex-Marine who is struggling to get back into society but can't seem to manage so he tracks down the girl in a picture he found in Afghanistan, a picture that saved his life. While it's a fine enough story and everyone did an okay acting job, I didn't really buy into the chemistry of the two main characters as much as I wanted to. There's a lot of satisfaction that comes from a nice girl getting away from a jerky man and into the arms of the sweet guy watching from the sidelines, which is the basic premise here. However, the actress (Taylor Schilling) just looks so much older than him and while there's nothing wrong with an age difference, it just seems extra noticeable here. I think she is supposed to be older because she has like a 8-year-old boy, but it was just distracting. Not to mention that Taylor Schilling bears a strong resemblance to Teri Polo, in my opinion. I kept wondering if they were related. On top of all that, her ex-husband (who's now a bad cop) is supposed to be like her high school boyfriend, yet HE looks like he's about 10 years older than her. Which, after checking IMDB, I'm not far off. So, the casting is questionable but it isn't a bad movie. My recommendation is to rent it.