The Notebook
April 2005 Reviewed by: Josh Barber Format: DVD	(all ratings out of 5): Overall Enjoyment Picture Quality Packaged Extras Sound Quality

Based on the novel by Nicholas Sparks, The Notebook is a story within a story: we first meet Duke (James Garner) in a retirement home, reading to a woman (Gena Rowlands) from an old book. It seems that he is sweet on her, and that she's humoring him. The story he reads is about two young lovers kept apart by their different social class. Allie (Rachel McAdams) is a young woman of wealth, while Noah (Ryan Gosling) is the son of a worker. As Duke reads the story to the woman, she begins to care about what happens to the couple and to look forward to Duke's visits. And we see the lovers’ story enacted.

There is no denying that The Notebook looks beautiful on DVD. The colors are reproduced clearly with a few sporadic errors. Many of the daytime scenes in the flashbacks look almost like paintings, but nighttime scenes are often too dark. It is a bit difficult to tell what's going on at some points during the carnival and inside Noah's house. That said, it is better to err a bit on the side of darkness than to try to lighten the scenes and leave us with tons of grain. It is a flipper disk, widescreen on one side and fullscreen on the other.

Most of the movie is conversation between two people, so the audio is as front-loaded as you would expect. However, New Line didn't miss the few opportunities for larger range. The carnival, dance hall, and war scenes sound bustling and hectic.

There are two commentaries. The first, by Nick Cassavetes, is quite informative, if a bit dry. He discusses what is onscreen at the moment, the large set pieces, framing and composition, and what it was like working with his actors. The second commentary by writer Nicholas Sparks discusses the changes he made between the book and the movie, but goes off on strange tangents ignoring what is happening onscreen. This track is no more than an excuse for Sparks to tell two hours' worth of anecdotes and talk about whatever comes to mind. It is not an actual commentary on the film.

There are 12 deleted scenes, with optional commentary from Alan Heim, the film's editor. The quality of these scenes is nearly as good as those in the finished film -- a nice surprise. Heim's commentary is informative and more enjoyable than either of the two feature commentary tracks. He talks about the process of trimming a three-hour film down to two, his experiences with the MPAA rating board, and how that organization functions.

The featurette "All in the Family: Nick Cassavetes" is part biography, part making-of. While The Notebook is gentle and intimate, Cassavetes is the antithesis: loud and energetic. We learn about his parents -- famous indie director John Cassavetes and actress Gena Rowlands -- and how their work influenced him.

"Nicholas Sparks: A Simple Story, Well Told" is a grandstanding puff piece about how the author has become a force in recent years in the world of the romance novel. "Southern Living: Locating The Notebook" is a typical location-scouting trip. "Casting Rachel and Ryan" is two screen tests, nothing more. For the most part, the extras will be of mild interest to enraptured fans, but won't hold the attention of casual viewers more than once.

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