A scene from the movie ‘Dear John’

"G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra’s” Channing Tatum plays a soldier who falls for “Mamma Mia!” star Amanda Seyfried in the new romantic drama “Dear John,” in theaters on Friday, Feb. 5. Like many Nicholas Sparks stories, it’s sure to be a tearjerker.

“A lot of tears are shed,” says Amanda. “It’s really sentimental. I think it’s absolutely inspiring, and I’m proud of that. And, you know, everybody needs a little romance.”

“I know what ‘The Notebook’ did to my girlfriend at the time – just utter waterworks,” adds Channing. “It was for a reason. Those movies just hit something inside of everybody. I think even guys, at the end of the movie, guys are just trying to hold it together.”

Based on the novel by Sparks, Channing plays John, a young soldier on leave who meets idealistic college student Savannah (Amanda) while she’s on spring break. All it takes is two weeks for the pair to fall deeply in love. But when John is called back in harm’s way repeatedly, they remain connected throughout the years with a continuous stream of touching love letters. But will their bond ultimately tear them apart? Henry Thomas and Richard Jenkins also star in the film from Oscar-winning director Lasse Hallstrom.

“It was a little darker than some of the things that I had seen in the past from [Sparks],” says Channing of the project. “And it didn’t even really feel like a war thing. It was just two kids that fell in love and had no idea how to be in love – and they had no idea what was coming down the road.”

Of his co-star, Channing beams, “She’s kind of really quirky and interesting. She’s so talented that she makes really interesting choices. Plus, she’s beautiful and funny. You can’t replace that.”

“He’s a guy’s guy, but he’s so sensitive to how people are feeling around him,” says Amanda of her hunky co-star. “He’s so handsome too. He’s not bad to look at. And all the kissing scenes and the romantic scenes, they just were silly. We made it silly and we made it fun because it can be awkward when your partner is visiting, [and Channing] was engaged at the time, and now he’s married.”

Asked about the most romantic thing she’s ever done, Amanda says, “I was just thinking about it the other day actually. I just flew and surprised somebody before he woke up – it was my first boyfriend ever. I was making my first movie, ‘Mean Girls,’ and I flew in and I took a taxi to his Manhattan apartment. I got in bed with him and he was just so surprised and it was so romantic.”