Geek Girl Features

Put simply, “ The Vow” is a film about love enduring in spite of impossible obstacles. Starring Rachael McAdams (The Notebook) and Channing Tatum (Dear John) as a couple who must overcome the difficulties of amnesia and reclaim what they had.

A car accident, which was depicted quite artfully without the violence the moment could have had, leaves up-and-coming artist Paige (McAdams) in a drug induced coma.

After waking up, she has no remembrance of the past few years of her life, including her marriage to Leo (Tatum). Her last memory is of being engaged to someone else and studying for her law degree.

Following her doctors orders, she returns home and attempts to reclaim a life she no longer remembers. The difficulties she faces turns what was a loving couple at the beginning of the movie into a couple that is frustrated with each other at the lack of control in their situation.

In the midst of all this, there’s the interfering father who has bigger plans for his returned daughter and the ex-fiancé with high hopes of reconciliation. The movie has plenty to drive it forward as the characters jump from one problem to another.

When things don’t quite work out how they hoped it would, a tough decision is made, but when she settles back into her old “old” life, she starts down the path that led to love in the first place.

The movie ends with high hopes for the couple as they start fresh in the attempt to regain the love lost, and find new love in the rediscovery. Directed by Michael Suscy, the film follows characters based loosely on the real life couple that experienced events depicted in the movie. This basis in reality gives the film a unique feel for a romantic drama, instead of being another addition to the Nicholas Sparks line of movies.

Using their strong religious beliefs, real life couple Kim and Krickitt Carpenter overcame obstacles introduced by the head injury and stayed together and had two children, although Krickitt never regained her memory. The film does not try to sugar coat a difficult situation, instead attempts to depict it in as real a manner as possible.

Both the actors are convincing in their characters, and with some humor interjected making the flow of events easier, the story will elicit some to tears as the difficulties the couple faces play out on screen.