Director: Michael Sucsy
Starring: Channing Tatum, Rachel McAdams, Jessica Lange, Sam Neill
You make a promise to stand by your partner in sickness and in health. Jake (Tatum) is now faced to stand by his promise to Paige (McAdams). After a night out at the movies, Jake and Paige are the victims of a car accident. A trucker slides into their stopped car on a slippery snowy road. Paige's body slides through the windshield while Jake suffers some cuts and bruises. That scenario seems to always happens in movies. One is on their death bed while the other comes out unscathed. They are a young beautiful married couple. Jake runs a recording studio while Paige is a sculptor. After waking up from a coma, Paige has severe memory loss. She cannot remember who Jake is and the life they had together. Her parents (Neill and Lange) show up at the hospital and want to take her home to rest and regain her memory. Paige hasn't seen her parents in years, and Jake believes it is in her best interest to stay with him instead of the life her parents wanted out of her. Paige decides to go back to her home with Jake and try to remember the life she had before the accident. It's a slow process for Jake to cope with while dealing with pressure from her parents.
The Vow is inspired by a true story. You even see an image of the real couple as the end credits roll. I wonder if it is merely the premise of the movie that is the inspiration or if more specific details are also based on truth. Between the disapproving parents or the former fiance (Scott Speedman), parts of the movie seem very formulaic and forced for dramatic purposes. Channing Tatum and Rachel McAdams are no strangers to the romantic genre. They both ooze sex appeal, charm, and a sense of humor which make them both perfect for these types of movies. They both have starred in movies based on Nicholas Sparks novels. This movie has that Sparks appeal to it but it's missing the element that sucks you in like The Notebook gave the audience. Tatum and McAdams work well together. They have more chemistry together than some of their past co-stars. Even with three screenwriters attached, the script still feels off at times which makes it feel quite slow in the middle. While it's not the best romance movie of all times, it certainly isn't the worst. The chemistry between Tatum and McAdams make the movie work just enough to wonder what you would do if you were in their shoes and makes you hope for the best in the end.
RATING: *** (3 out of 5 stars)
The film may be entirely unafraid of predictability, but it’s sweet, shiny and well acted; essentially it delivers exactly what it says on the box. It also helps that Tatum and McAdams are good here as well, but nothing that they haven’t already done before. Good review. Give mine a look when you get the chance.
ReplyDeleteDan O.
ReplyDeleteThanks for reading my blog! I read some of yours too and enjoyed it. So glad to hear that Super 8 made your Top 10 of 2011. I loved that movie and wish it would been remembered around the year-end awards season.