Safe Haven, the movie adaptation of the Nicholas Sparks novel, is set to be released this February and last night it enjoyed its premier in Toronto. Stars Josh Duhamel and Julianne Hough were greeted with swathes of fans, for whom they stopped to give signatures and have their photos taken.  

Directed by Swedish director Lasse Hallstrom (What's Eating Gilbert Grape? and Salmon Fishing in the Yemen), Safe Haven is a romantic film about Katie (Hough), a young woman with a dark secret who moves into a new town, running from an abusive past. She ends up finding romance, and is forced to choose between safety and solitude, or risk and love.

Unlike your bog standard romantic drama, this one has a touch of fear running throughout. As 680news reports, Duhamel said of the film:"There's a whole impeding suspense that threads throughout the film that I really liked about the script." Hough used her own experiences in the role, saying: "I went and saw women at shelters and talked to them. It's a big responsibility to play somebody like Katie because this is a real issue and you want to do it justice." 

Safe Haven is set to be released on Valentines day.