AIB

Ashlee Brophy

Section 06

November 27, 2007

A Walk to Remember 

Outline 

·Introduction: Thesis and what the movie addresses

·Paragraph 2: Character Jaime/Landon and summary of movie

·Paragraph 3: The movie’s importance: Peer pressure

·Paragraph 4: Teaching not to judge on outer appearance

·Paragraph 5: Leukemia: Dealing with loss

·Paragraph 6: Argument against movie

·Paragraph 7: Conclusion 

            A Walk to Remember is a movie that addresses the consequences of submitting to peer pressure while taking the main characters through an expected journey of trust, faith, acceptance, and unconditional love. I feel this is an important movie for students to watch because it deals with real life situations; for instance, loss and the pressures students face while attending school. This film starts out in the town of Beaufort, North Carolina, where Landon Carter remembers his senior year of High school as being one he will never forget. One of those memories was Jamie Sullivan, the girl who changed his life forever.

           Jamie, a preacher’s daughter, was one of the most memorable characters in the movie. She was a serious and conservative girl that was far from trendy, and didn’t care what other people thought of her. Landon, on the other hand, hung with the in-crowd. He was a careless, temperamental, irresponsible guy who breezed through school on looks and charm; he had no plans for the future and no faith in himself.  After a practical joke goes horribly wrong and he ends up putting a classmate in the hospital, Landon is forced to tutor a student on Saturday mornings and participate in the Drama Club’s spring play.  Jamie is also a cast member in this play.  Once Landon finds he cannot learn his lines without help, he turns to Jamie. Unexpectedly, Landon goes against his own expectations and his friends and finds he is falling in love with the preacher’s daughter.  She changed his life for the better by showing him a passion for life he never thought was possible.  

          I feel this movie is important for college students because it teaches important life lessons, and addresses how peer pressure can cause some people to be cruel and insensitive to others they don’t really know just to gain approval from friends.  Landon was in a group that only relied on appearances and popularity. In order to be recognized as part of that group, potential new members were pressured to perform a dangerous stunt as an initiation into the clique.  It shows how harmful indifference, cruelty, verbal abuse, arrogance and being self absorbed can be.   I feel this is very similar to behaviors and pressures college student’s face; especially during their freshman year when they are trying to fit in with the learning environment.  Students are constantly subjected to temptations; for instance, under-age drinking, using illegal drugs, or going against beliefs just to be accepted.

          This movie teaches not to judge someone because of their outer appearance, but to look at the inside.  Before getting to know Jamie, Landon and his friends would always have a mean remark to say about her or what she wore. He was never the guy to notice her kind, innocent, and uncommon personality.  After spending time with her while practicing for the play, he noticed that Jamie had more to her than meets the eye. She was very thoughtful and didn’t take life for granted as he had over the years.

          Later on in the movie, Landon realizes that Jamie’s the one for him, but is taken by surprise when Jamie informs him of her battle with Leukemia. Shocked and saddened by this, he tries to fulfill all of Jamie’s goals in life. For example, one of her goals was to be two places at once, so he took her to the border of two states and had her straddle the line. I feel students can relate to this because at some point in our lives we all have to deal with loss; whether it is the passing of a family member, pet, or friend. This film shows how people can take negative situations and turns them into something positive; for example, Jamie’s outlook on life was always optimistic even though she knew her life would be short lived because of her illness.

          Many critics believed that this movie was all based on religion. They felt it was trying to persuade the viewers to convert to the film’s main religion, Christianity, but I would have to disagree. Even though Jamie and her father are spiritual, the movie focuses more on life lessons and how to go through life with a positive outlook. I feel this film is not all about religion; it’s about going with the belief of what is right and learning to accept people for who they are.

          Overall this film was very enlightening and informative; it taught me to always appreciate what life has to offer and never take anything for granted. I feel Landon learned, from Jamie, one of the most important things in life, which is believing in yourself and others. He put aside the stereotypical judgments and went with his heart. I think this is more than just a typical love story; it’s a story that builds trust, faith, and motivation to live life to the fullest.