I’m a lover of chick flicks so naturally I was looking forward to seeing ‘The Vow’. The film stars both Channing Tatum and Rachel McAdams, regulars of this genre of film. Unfortunately, I was slightly disappointed as this film did not live up to my expectations.
Inspired by true events, ‘The Vow’ tells the story of Leo (Tatum) and Paige (McAdams), a happily married couple, madly in love with each other. Their life together is perfect until tragedy strikes. A car accident puts Paige in a coma and leaves her with severe memory loss. She can’t remember the past five years of her life, meaning she doesn’t remember Leo or the life she shared with him.
Leo has to make Paige fall in love with him all over again. This being a Hollywood love story, this is easier said than done as Paige is a completely different person after the accident. She returns to the life she lived before she met Leo with different interests, tastes and style. She also thinks she may have feelings for her ex-fiance, Jeremy. Paige sees Leo as a complete stranger and wants very little to do with him, while Paige is still the love of Leo’s life. The movie centres on trying to recreate the relationship they once had.
My problem with ‘The Vow’ is the relationship between Paige and Leo. Paige is hard to like at times. For someone who can’t remember her husband or why she fell in love with him she doesn’t seem too upset. She barely sheds a tear or shows emotion when she watches her wedding video, for Christ’s sake! Instead, she seems perfectly happy to settle back into her old lifestyle and hardly gives Leo a chance to win her over.
The performances from McAdams and Tatum are pretty solid although I did find Tatum’s performance a little cheesy at times. The very few laughs I had during the movie were at some of the cringe inducing lines he delivers to Paige. While the two leads look great together on screen, I found they lacked the spark that would have made us care about them as a couple.
There are no outstanding or memorable performances by the supporting cast. Sam Jones as Paige’s father is the only performance of note, while the character of Jeremy is so smug at getting a second chance with Paige that you want to hit him in the face. Hard.
Overall the story moves at a nice pace and makes for pleasant viewing. A glimpse of Channing Tatum’s perfectly sculpted backside is a saving grace, but this film had promised so much more in its trailers. It’s a romantic drama that most people will watch for the eye candy, but it is by no means a classic that you’ll watch again and again.
Rating: 3/5
Patricia Rice
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