The Definitive Guide to Living in the Capital , Cairo , Egypt

Robert Pattinson steps outside his Twilight Vampire
shell in this romantic drama of a troubled young man who falls in love with the
equally troubled Ally (de Ravin). Despite its attractive cast featuring major
stars such as Bronson and Cooper, Remember
Me does little to be remembered.

Tyler (Pattinson) is a young man struggling to come to
terms with his brother’s suicide and his turbulent relationship with his
millionaire businessman father (Brosnan). He constantly gets into trouble and lacks
direction in his life until he meets Ally, who, for
some reason, is able to get beneath the armour and touch Tyler in a way he had never thought possible.

Of course, Ally comes with baggage too, namely her
overprotective detective father (Cooper), who only further complicates her
relationship with Tyler. Supporting characters like Tyler’s younger sister
Caroline and his best friend Aidan provide fodder to the plot.

The film reaches
its climax when the complex characters’ lives all tumultuously intertwine,
allowing for the characters to develop and show growth. Sadly, the film’s
abrupt ending gives an overly dramatic and unnecessary twist to the story,
leaving viewers scratching their heads as to why this direction was chosen.

Despite the believable chemistry between Pattinson and
de Ravin, their performances can do little to move the film forward. At times,
one feels it is an even slower version of a Nicolas Sparks novel that attempts
to touch, make one laugh and create a sense that love can overcome all. The
Nicholas Sparks similarity is especially unfortunate, since his latest film
adaptation Dear John was released at
the same time as Remember Me and may
confuse viewers with its very similar dramatic theme (we won’t spoil the ending
for you).

Overall, Remember
Me is a decent attempt to crawl into the space held by the Sparks’ novels of love against the odds. In
essence, the purpose of the film is dedicated to the idea of living in the
now; and encourages viewers to stop searching for answers in the past and move forward.

This is a perfect date film; if your idea of a perfect date is to have
your companion sobbing uncontrollably at the end of the film. Remember Me is
still very much a teen flick that will undoubtedly attract hoards of Twilight fans.
However, don’t expect this to be in the same world as The Notebook, as the direction leaves just too much to be desired.