at the movies: one day

August 28, 2011 in movies

One Day was the best book I read last year, so I was looking forward to seeing whether the film adaption (starring Anne Hathaway and Jim Sturgess) would keep the charm of the novel.

The story follows the lives Emma (Hathaway) and Dexter (Sturgess), starting with a one-night stand on their graduation night – 15 July 1988. The story then skips one year ahead to the same date, and the next year, and so on (hence the title), to show what Em and Dex are up to and how their friendship has progressed.

I wasn’t sure how the year-skipping, which worked so well in the book, would translate to the screen. Fortunately I wasn’t disappointed and the boy (who was doing his obligatory chick-flick viewing in exchange for me seeing The Rise of the Planet of the Apes last weekend) seemed to enjoy it too.

Ms Hathaway was surprisingly convincing as a Brit and I loved her version of Emma every bit as much as I loved the character in the book. Sturgess also did a brilliant job of bringing loveable rogue Dex to live.

I would definitely recommend One Day as a good date night or girls night film – it has some good laughs, some touching emotional scenes and a decent plot to boot. That being said, I still preferred the book and would recommend you read it for yourself.

Rating: ***1/2

(almost) at the movies: one day

May 4, 2011 in movies

One Day is one of those movies I will see with some trepidation. You see, I adored the book (I highly recommend it if you haven’t already read it) and we all know how badly book-to-screen translations can go.

When I heard Anne Hathaway was cast in the leading role of Emma, I relaxed a little because I think she’s a great choice – even if she doesn’t naturally have a British accent. I also have high hopes for Jim Sturgess as Dexter after his fabulous portrayal of Janusz in The Way Back.

Take a look at the trailer and let me know what you think.

One Day hits cinemas in Australia on 28 July, the US on 19 August and the UK on 30 September.