Charlie St. Cloud

Charlie St. Cloud is a 2010 American supernatural drama film based on Ben Sherwood’s novel The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud, published in 2004 by Bantam Books. The film is directed by Burr Steers and stars Zac Efron and Amanda Crew. The story is of Charlie St. Cloud’s choice between keeping a promise he made to his younger brother, who died in a car accident, or going after the girl he loves. In some markets the film used the complete title of the book.

After winning the rights to adapt the book into film, Universal Pictures had James Schamus and Lewis Colick write drafts for the script, with Craig Pearce writing the final script, and director Steers helping to polish it for completion. Produced by Relativity Media and Marc Platt Productions, the film’s production began in Upstate New York, and nearby British Columbia. Filming lasted from July to late October 2009, with much of it occurring in Upstate New York’s forest and Gibsons’ coastal pier.

Charlie St. Cloud was theatrically released in the United States on July 30, 2010 and was a critical and commercial failure. The film received generally negative reviews from critics, with many criticizing the script’s tonal confliction and Efron’s performance, and grossed just $48 million worldwide against a production budget of $44 million (not including advertisement and distribution costs).