Perfect girl who is too shy to make friends meets slightly troubled boy with a heart of gold, the two fall madly in love, the end. The story pretty much writes itself…or so I thought. Though still maintaining some of the qualities of a predictable love story, “Endless Love” takes the meaning of a love story to a new level when it brings family to the forefront.

It’s graduation day, and Jade Butterfield (Gabriella Wilde) is facing the reality of her last four years of high school. Stunningly beautiful, privileged, smart, and shy, the character has no visible flaws, but didn’t get to know her classmates, as she was mourning the loss of her brother who died after a long battle with cancer.

Jade soon meets David (Alex Pettyfer), the ridiculously handsome popular guy who has had a crush on Jade for the past four years. The relationship between the two quickly blossoms when Jade invites David to her graduation party, and he saves the day by getting the whole class to show up, fulfilling Jade’s wishes.

The montages of their very sudden love soon ensue and there isn’t much explanation as to why the two are so taken with each other than the fact that Butterfield is enjoying being a teenager for the first time. After a date or two, David explains to Jade’s family that he has always been looking for true love and that it is all that matters to him. My eyebrows raised and stayed there for the next several scenes.

Other eyebrow-raise-inducing moments include when David sneaks into the Butterfield’s house after he leaves this same dinner and the couple consummates their relationship in the family living room after the house has gone to sleep. I was literally cringing. The soon to be pre-med student who is supposed to be smart, with her kind-of-boyfriend, in the family living room, when her parents are in the house, after she has been talking to the guy for a about a week…I can’t see why this part of the plot is necessary, considering it is not sending a great message to its young teenage audience.

Early on, the obvious dislike of David by overprotective father Hugh Butterfield (Bruce Greenwood) is made known, and what starts out as just strict parenting takes over the plotline as Hugh makes it his mission to keep David away from his daughter. When Jade gives up her summer internship and starts to think for herself, Hugh digs up David’s troubled past (all completely explainable of course).Once you get past the ridiculousness of the relationship, it is possible to enjoy if you are a fan of gooey and predictable romantic movies. Wilde and Pettyfer have great chemistry, and though they have very little to work with in terms of the depth of their characters, they make the romance fun to watch if you let yourself enjoy the movie.

Hugh’s vengeance against David results in a restraining order after the couple gets into trouble, which seems irrational at times, but ends up making you just feel bad for the poor father. The tumultuous family dynamic between Hugh, his wife Anne (Joely Richardson), son Harry Elliot (Robert Patrick), and Jade ends up propelling the film forward as they deal with the way each member has acted as a result of their brother/sons death.

The focus on family is what makes this movie a standout and, by the end, I found myself really attached to the story. The plot goes from a love story about two teenagers to a story about love itself and what that means for individuals and for families, which is a story worth embracing.

Karly Horn is an A&E Editor for The Patriot and jcpatriot.com.