REVIEW: 'The Vow'

Romantic drama based on the true story of a man (Channing Tatum, Dear John) who works on re-winning the heart of his wife (Rachel McAdams, The Notebook) after she suffers severe memory loss. Now playing nationwide, click for movie times and trailer.
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Had I not liked this romance flick, I would not hesitate to call The Vow “forgettable.” But I’m willing to sacrifice a terrible pun in order to admit when a film has charmed me somewhat. The memory love loss storyline drives some pretty interesting conflictions: not remembering your own husband, realising you ditched your own family, discovering you’re a vegetarian. It’s intriguing to watch the leads’ new awkward relationship unfold (or refold, as it were), though the film still shovels a typical amount of contrived schmaltz in your lap.

For the most part, the performances deliver. McAdams draws out an appropriate amount of frustration while keeping us sympathetic in her attempts to recollect. Sam Neill whips out his standard-but-effective condescending old man routine. Then there’s Channing Tatum. I want to like the guy, I really do. With each role, he wins me over a little more, this film included. However, despite his darnedest efforts, he still can’t fully escape his Sonny Bill-like expressionless presence. At least the ladies get a generous shot of his unfairly chiseled bare bottom. So there’s that.

The movie’s been given the Hollywood spit-shine, sometimes piercing the eyes with its gleam. Various plot turns do little to surprise either, making it easy to pick out some confrontations half an hour before they happen. But looking past all that, The Vow is an undeniably sweet movie that had me pleasantly surprised in where it ended up.

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