Beystiman
It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.
Gutsycurene
Fanciful, disturbing, and wildly original, it announces the arrival of a fresh, bold voice in American cinema.
Hadrina
The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful
Shopaholic35
Who would have thought but this movie is actually really good. It's got a solid cast where everyone seems to be pulling their own weight and I can't help but love Mandy Moore in these teen dramas as she is so endearing and relatable. The storyline is so much deeper than I ever could have imagined and is certainly not some vapid teen movie. The relationships are complex and reflect real-life dramas, although not everyone experiences them and normally not in one go.For a movie over 10 years old it has aged really well. As I had never seen it before I was impressed that it didn't fall into a decade genre. It makes for the perfect Sunday afternoon movie and I give it props for being engaging and very entertaining.
Amy Adler
Halley (Mandy Moore) is having trouble figuring out "how to deal" with problems. Her parents have just divorced, because her Peter Pan-like father (Peter Gallagher), a disc jockey, had his eyes set on a much younger woman. Her mother (Allison Janney) is, appropriately, crushed and remote. Big sister Ashley is planning a wedding with her buttoned-down fiancé and trying to make everything perfect. If it were not for her best friend Scarlett, Halley would be out in the cold. Then, tragedy strikes. Scarlett's boyfriend dies of a heart condition in the middle of a soccer game and Halley is thrown for another loop. When she is approached by Macon, a friend of the deceased boy, she just wants to be friends. But, is it possible for Halley to keep Macon at arms length? Teens may love this movie and it does have likable stars. Moore is really quite nice as the teen with troubles. Gallagher and Janney are, likewise, very fine as the parents. Indeed, the acting of the cast members is good and not the movie's problem at all. Instead, it is the script and its contrivances that are the problem. Halley seems too worldly wise to be a teen and just boomerangs from one problem to another, in this viewer's opinion. No matter. Most young fans of the film will probably embrace it mightily. But, if you are over 30, watching the film may seem more like a chore than entertainment.
rose418
I would highly recommend How To Deal. Combining Sarah Dessen's two brilliant novels, (Someone Like You and That Summer) Mandy Moore and Trent Ford as Haley Martin and Macon Forrester deliver a wonderful, creative, and believable story. The plot incorporates the novels together beautifully,without venturing drastically from the books. It is very rare to find a movie that can live up to it's book and especially one that is made from two but How To Deal does this amazingly well. It is refreshing to see such real teenage problems put onto screen without clichéd humor or ridicule's plots. The acting in this movie was decent at the very least, Nina Foch provides comic humor as the grandmother and Mandy Moore plays a perfect Haley. As far as Mandy Moore is concerned this is diffenatley one of her better films.
gabisport
This is the best movie ever. . . so romantic and it just can be watched over and over again. The best part is that the music is awesome... "Why can't I" is awesome You may not be able to watch it but it is an awesome movie. Many moore has a great role in which hse shined above what was wanted to produce a stunning movie.. she was so pretty.This is the best movie ever. . . so romantic and it just can be watched over and over again. The best part is that the music is awesome... "Why can't I" is awesome You may not be able to watch it but it is an awesome movie. Many moore has a great role in which hse shined above what was wanted to produce a stunning movie.. she was so pretty.
