Takeaway: Fully braced for maudlin melodrama, and very pleasantly surprised! Here’s the test: if you love the work of Nicholas Sparks, or love a love story but run for daylight at the mention of his name, then stop reading now and just start making arrangements to see The Vow. It has all the elements you’re looking for, and you’ll come away very well pleased. Enjoy!
Still reading? Then perhaps you’re dreading the Valentine’s Day Movie Date… but not to worry. Though starring Rachel McAdams and trailer-positioned for the season to evoke The Notebook (uh-oh…), The Vow actually more resembles Love and Other Drugs with all the sweet affection of Letters to Juliet.
Actually less the story of the romance itself, The Vow more tells the story of a man showing up with grace, maturity, and genuine love for his partner, and putting her well-being above his own ease without forgetting himself in the process (both true stories, by the way, go Gentlemen go). Here we see love in its highest form.
There are some questions left hanging, it’s true (for example, why doesn’t she start from a place of trust ~ however intellectual ~ given the evidence of her decisions, and then question and piece from there?, etc.), and to the extent they go unacknowledged it does undermine. However, it’s clear that the movie is the “lite” version of the actual events (hence more Letters and less Drugs), with the answers ultimately moot and The Vow’s lingering impression being one of substance and inspiration. (If we were to get the full dramatic version, it would be Love and Other Drugs plus the anguish of The Doctor, complete with Wendy Crewson.)
Though McAdams gets along as per usual on her good looks, Channing Tatum trades on that and a good bit more, actually doing quite a fine job indeed ~ one that actually earns a closer following, even. Fun tip for his scene at a wedding sharing a drink with Sam Neill as his father-in-law: if you have any interest in Safe House at all, pay close attention to Sam Neill’s instruction. You’ll be glad you did. *
Story: Fact-inspired story of a newlywed husband whose wife wakes from coma with no memory of him.
Genre: Drama, Romance, True Story
Starring: Channing Tatum, Rachel McAdams, Sam Neill, Jessica Lange
Directed by: Michael Sucsy
See it if: You enjoyed Letters to Juliet, Love and Other Drugs, or yes, The Notebook. Or if you hated One Day or yes, The Notebook.
Skip it if: You don’t want your heart tugged on. Not to say you don’t enjoy being moved by something genuinely touching, but that you resist being pulled on to feel it whether the film’s earned it or not. The Vow does earns it, but you’ll need grant it the space to do so.
MPAA: PG-13
Running time: 104 minutes
Official site: http://thevow-movie.com
Houston release date: February 10, 2012
Tickets: Check Fandango.com or your local listings
* SPOILER ALERT: In Safe House, our hero is told, “Remember: if anyone ever says, ‘We’ll take it from here, you’re scr**ed.’” Hilarious.
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