The Vow

The Vow

2012

Drama (Romantic)

Rated: PG-13

Running Time: 104 minutes

Starring: Channing Tatum, Rachel McAdams, Jessica Lange, Sam Neil, Scott Speedman

Directed By: Michael Sucsy

Rating: 6 out of 10

Outline

A husband must deal with his wife’s memory loss after a bad car crash.

Review

I was pretty disappointed finishing second to Channing Tatum on People’s sexiest man poll but I have gotten over it. The Vow is the story of married couple, Page and Leo. After a car accident leaves Page with severe memory loss, Leo must try and rebuild her lost memories and their relationship.

So this movie is decent for its genre but felt very much like a modern day Notebook. The film starts off and the viewer is treated to a very over the top courtship between Page and Leo. I get that it is to establish a super type of love only found in movies but it is a little much. People confessing their love in the rain and saying their vows in illegal places is a nice thought, but cheesy in practice. The film doesn’t really get going until the car accident and Page’s subsequent memory loss. Where the film works is the struggle of Leo to get Page to remember. His frustration of seeing his wife in duress is evident and his love is shown through his actions. The easy decision to just quit and move on seems like a distant thought as he does everything in his power to save the one he loves. He goes to uncomfortable family dinners, parties, suffers emotional outbursts, and it all seems genuine. The love is apparent on his side and the confusion is apparent on her side. She remembers nothing and so Leo is a stranger. The film works because you feel each of their pain equally and wonder how you would react if you were put in the same situation.

Leo is played by Channing Tatum and he is good at times and unremarkable in others. What he lacks in talent he makes up in sincerity so I liked his performance. Page is played by Rachel McAdams and she puts in a solid performance. The two of them are cute together and that really seals the story as it feels like Leo would stick it through to the end in such a horrible situation.

Although their love is super over the top, they still seem natural in their interactions. Not too many people get second chances at love so it is cool to see all the things Leo does to get her to remember. Seeing if their relationship works out or if they split up is worth the watch but there are problems with this film. I found that too many of Page’s inner circle try and take advantage of a woman with recent head trauma. Her family members, friends, and ex boyfriend all seem fine to interject in her affairs. Having all these shallow characters meddling gets tiresome to watch and really seems out of place. As the film comes to a close I felt they got it right and it made sense to the overall story. So The Vow won’t really pull on anyone’s heart strings but what it will do is make you like the characters just enough to get involved in its outcome.

Director Michael Sucsy does an okay job with this film. His casting is solid with the veteran McAdams and the charismatic Tatum. Although the story seems forced, it never the less has some honest appeal to it. This film is never slow and it is an easy watch even though the story is a tad ridiculous. I wouldn’t mind seeing another film from this director.

I give this movie a recommendation to people looking for a light look on love about a serious topic.

T Factor + If you like romantic movies than this could score higher on the rating scale.

T Factor – If you watch a lot of romantic movies than this could score lower on the rating scale due to originality.

If you liked this film reel recommendations: The Notebook, A Walk to Remember.