A romance, yes, but with unusual twists and a complex story line. That is what makes the new film Safe Haven so interesting to watch. February 14 is known as a day for romance, and this year at the theater is no exception. Rated PG-13 for sexual and adult content, KIDS FIRST! Film Critic, Victoria Burns, age 14, recommends this film, even to those who are not fans of the romance genre, because it is “unique and not cliche.”

Safe Haven
Reviewed by Victoria Burns
Video review available here. 

Safe Haven is surprisingly eerie for a romantic movie. I have never seen Julianne Hough play such an intense role before, and she is honest in her acting. She plays a distrusting woman in a new town looking to have no neighbors, friends or any emotional ties, but she forgets that southerners are strangely friendly. Her goal becomes more difficult.

I love the style in which the movie is shot, flashing between the present to the past.  This movie follows a woman named Katie who runs away from home and from her husband who is stalking her. She takes a bus, in a disguise, to any town. When the bus stops for a pit stop, she decides that the sleepy and quaint little town she has stopped in is the one for her.

Katie (Julianne Hough) has to start over with a new name, house and people.  First she gets a job at a local seafood shack and buys a new house. She stops at the local store for groceries and meets a charming little girl named Lexi (Mimi Kirkland), followed by her dad, Alex (Josh Duhamel), who coincidentally is the same guy that sold her coffee the first day in town. Neither of them at first admit it, but it is clear that there is an instant attraction. From then on, whenever Katie goes to the store she sees Lexie and meets her brother Josh (Noah Lomax) and flirts with Alex.  Katie tells all of her encounters with Alex to her one neighbor Jo (Cobie Smulders), and Jo encourages the idea of Katie dating Alex. The closer Alex and Katie get, the more dangerous their relationship becomes.

There is a twist when Alex, who is friends with the sheriff, sees a wanted for murder post with Katie’s face on it. He confronts her and tells her to leave. To find out what happens next, you’ll have to see it for yourself.

I give this movie five out of five stars because this romantic movie is unique and not cliché. I recommend it for ages 13 and up or mature audiences, due to the sexual scenes and scenes of domestic and substance abuse. I am not a fan of romantic movies, but this one was the best I have seen. It even has an exciting twist that I never saw coming. I love this movie and will see it again.