It’s been over 20 years since The Notebook premiered in cinemas across the globe. Yet despite how much time has passed since the film’s release, fans of the Nicholas Sparks film still can’t get enough of Allie and Noah’s slowburn romance.
While there are so many iconic moments throughout the 2004 film, it’s hard to top the classic “kissing in the rain” scene, in which Allie and Noah finally profess their feelings for each other after seven long years apart.
“Why didn’t you write me?” Allie asks Noah, while soaking in the downpour of southern rain. “Why? It wasn’t over for me,” she continues. “I waited for you, for seven years!”
That’s when Noah hits her with the reality of the situation: “I wrote you 365 letters,” he tells her. “I wrote to you everyday for a year… It wasn’t over for me,” he presses. “It still isn’t over.”
After this telling exchange, both embrace in a passionate kiss that has yet to be topped in cinema to this day. Seven years of heartache and tension finally released in the pouring rain!
But what many fans don’t realize is the sheer amount of tension that was brewing behind the scenes as well. It turns out, Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams weren’t really acting at all during that classic scene. Why? Because the actors were channeling all their off-screen feelings for each other into their characters’ romantic exchange.
And according to director Nick Cassavetes, filming this scene was the moment that brought McAdams and Gosling together in real life as well.
Did the Kissing in the Rain Scene Inspire an Off-Screen Romance Between Rachel McAdams and Ryan Gosling?
It’s amazing how much Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams’ relationship mirrored their onscreen counterparts in The Notebook. Just like Allie and Noah, the Barbie star and the Mean Girls actress failed to get along at first. In fact, it’s fair to say they downright loathed each other.
“We inspired the worst in each other,” Gosling said of his relationship with McAdams when speaking to The Guardian. “It was a strange experience, making a love story and not getting along with your co-star in any way… I don’t know what happened.”
But in a true “Noah and Allie” fashion, the actors went from butting heads to falling head over heals for one another. Director Nick Cassavetes recalls the moment things changed between McAdams and Gosling during that unforgettable kissing scene.
“When you saw the kids come together, it was like a car crash,” Cassavetes told Rotten Tomatoes of McAdams and Gosling’s behind the scenes bickering. “There was something built up between these two kids, and it has nothing to do with directing. Because when we turned the cameras on, the scene was like: He’s mad at her, she’s mad at him, and then he says that he wrote her every day, and that’s the key that unlocks the door. And when that door got unlocked, I didn’t need to direct nothing.”
Cassavetes continued, suggesting he barely had to do any work as a director since their off-screen chemistry was so off the charts. “These kids were on each other and I think that a lot of it was character, but a lot of it was … They wound up together for many years after the movie, which is…I don’t know if I’m proud of it, but I think it’s fantastic that they found each other like that,” he said. “And I think that was the moment, because they weren’t together before that kiss. But they were together after that kiss, so maybe that was one of the deciding moments.”
The pair recreated their kissing scene at the MTV Movie Awards
Following the overwhelming success of the romance film, Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams got to recreate their passion-fueled kissing scene after winning the MTV Movie Awards for the “Best Kiss” category.
After winning, Gosling has shared nothing but praise for McAdams’ kissing skills. He said, “You have to be born with a magic mouth. Some have said about Rachel that she’s kind of like what Jimi Hendrix was to the guitar.”
Which movies from Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams are you dying to see next?
Simone Torn is a pop culture writer with 10 years of experience. She has written for several entertainment magazines such as Nicki Swift, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Dexerto, and more.
Source:https://themusicessentials.com/entertainment/how-ryan-and-rachels-rain-kiss-sparked-real-romance/