Fans of Nicholas Sparks will be pleasantly surprised with the movie adapted from his book, “Nights in Rodanthe,” despite some changes made by screenwriters Ann Peacock and John Romano. After previously playing opposites in films such as “The Cotton Club” and “Unfaithful,” Richard Gere and Diane Lane are entertaining to watch with convincing chemistry, while beautiful seascapes add to the movie.

Adrienne Willis (Lane), a single mom who is dealing with a separation from her husband, is going to help her friend by watching her inn for a weekend while the friend is away on business. Before she leaves for the inn, her husband asks for a second chance to come home and make things right. He gives her the weekend to think about it.

While she’s at the inn, the only guest staying with her is Dr. Paul Flanner (Gere), who is in the process of dealing with some past, professional and personal issues of his own. Hurricane season is upon them and the inn is directly on the ocean’s edge in North Carolina. After dealing with internal storms and the hurricane, they progress from complete strangers to great friends, and finally to lovers, all within four days. They help each other finally become the people they have always wanted to be by helping each other remember who they were when they were young.

After leaving the inn in Rodanthe, Paul tries to make amends with his son, who is working as a doctor in the hills of Ecuador. Due to lack of a better form of communication, Paul and Adrienne are forced into a time of only being able to communicate by writing letters until he returns. This gives them time to get to know each other better and healing time for both of their families, until finally they decide they want to be together for the rest of their lives when he comes home. But a turn of events may prevent this dream from coming true.

It is definitely a tearjerker and a movie for girls’ night out or a date, but I recommend it to anyone who is a fan of Sparks and his romantic novels. He has a way of making you feel for the characters and their situation, and this film proves no different. It’s a movie that makes you want to believe in the “perfect love” and second chances at life.

3.5/5 stars.