Tag: ColleenHoover

Reminders of Him

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Kenna Rowan (Maika Monroe) returns to her hometown after five years in prison. After driving under the influence with her boyfriend Scotty Landry (Rudy Pankow), the two are in a car accident that ultimately kills Scotty. Pleading guilty to involuntary manslaughter, Kenna now hopes to make amends and she wants to start by reconnecting with her daughter Diem (Zoe Kosovic). But Scotty’s parents Grace (Lauren Graham) and Patrick (Bradley Whitford) don’t think it’s a good idea. When Kenna sparks up a friendship with Ledger Ward (Tyriq Withers), local bar owner and Scotty’s best friend, she hopes that he’ll help change the Landry’s mind about her.

The third of Colleen Hoover’s novels to get the big screen treatment, Reminders of Him was actually the first I read from her. I was curious to see how they would tackle it. From the romance to the not so easy subject matter, it was pretty much how I expected it would be. Hoover adaptions are starting to have the same sort of formula though that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It was a perfectly fine outing to the cinema.

Monroe, who is more commonly known in the horror genre, tries her luck in the romance field. She does a good job as Kenna, bringing a likability to her character. It’s obvious that she’s made mistakes, but she doesn’t want these to define her. I liked seeing her get her life back on track whether that included finding a job, befriending some of the fellow residents at her apartment complex (Jennifer Roberts and Monika Myers are standouts as Ruth Clayton and Lady Diana), and taking in a cat. Withers, another horror face, is also trying something new here. Although I wasn’t convinced by his powerful scenes, I did buy his chemistry with Monroe and thought they worked well together. Graham and Whitford were solid as the grieving parents who aren’t quite ready to move on. Graham, in particular, really impressed me with her emotional turn.

While there is no doubt about the romance element, I did think that the film excelled when it focused more on the family drama. Both biological and found family are explored here and even though they did a good job, I think it could have been even more impactful. I would have liked a scene between Kenna and Patrick, for example, where he forgave her. It also would have been nice to see a few more flashbacks between Scotty and his parents as the only one we got was the day of his birthday. That being said, I was appreciative of the flashbacks we did get because they helped fill in the blanks and also gave more backstory to these characters.

If you are looking for an uplifting film about family, love and second chances, then you should check out Reminders of Him. It may be a little bit on the slower side, but the payoff is mostly worth it. It’s not my favorite CoHo film to date, but I still thought it was a decent adaptation.

Rating: ♥️♥️♥️

Regretting You

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Morgan Grant (Allison Williams) got pregnant just out of high school. She married her boyfriend Chris (Scott Eastwood) and together they raised their daughter Clara (Mckenna Grace). When Chris is in a fatal accident with Morgan’s sister and Clara’s aunt Jenny (Willa Fitzgerald), an unbelievable betrayal comes to light. Morgan is now forced to pick up the pieces, but she isn’t alone – best friend and Jenny’s baby daddy Jonah (Dave Franco) is in the same boat.

Based on the best selling novel of the same name by Colleen Hoover, this is the second title to be adapted for the screen. After all the background drama surrounding It Ends With Us, I was skeptical to give this one a go. That being said, I did read the book a few years back and remember enjoying it. I also had the chance to watch this at an advanced screening so how could I say no?

There are quite a few characters and I thought that the casting choices were spot on. Williams was a shoe in for Morgan; she had the cautious and overprotective parent act down pat. Morgan’s relationship with Clara was an interesting one filled with many ups and downs. Williams and Grace worked well off each other and I bought them as mother/daughter. I still can’t get over the fact that Grace is nineteen now. I remember her starring as literally every single little girl character in every movie or tv show out there not too long ago! Franco had the whole quiet and slightly nerdy type down to a tee. His character was not the typical leading man, though as the film progressed, it became clear that that is exactly who he was. While Eastwood and Fitzgerald aren’t featured as much, the scenes that they were in helped to set up the dynamic between the friend group which I appreciated as there is a lot of important backstory.

Although there are some dramatic themes throughout the film, there are some sweet romances too. Clara falls for Miller Adams (Mason Thames), the most popular boy in school. He becomes a pillar of support for her after the death of her father and aunt. I thought they did a great job depicting their relationship. It really encapsulated that first love feeling. I also loved the will they won’t they for Morgan and Jonah. He’s had feelings for her for forever and somehow ended up with her sister instead. How it all develops between them had me on the edge of my seat.

Overall, Regretting You exceeded my expectations. It had everything you could want from a romantic dramady. Complete with swoon worthy moments and some devastating ones, what it all came down to was the importance of family. As far as I recall, it was also true to the book which always gets extra points from me.

Rating: ♥️♥️♥️♥️

It Ends With Us

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Colleen Hoover’s novel It Ends With Us took the world by storm when it first came out in 2016. Now it has been adapted for the screen. The story follows Lily Bloom (Blake Lively), a woman who moves to Boston in hopes of opening a flower shop after a traumatic childhood. She meets neurosurgeon Ryle Kincaid (Justin Baldoni) and is swept up is his charm and good looks. But when Lily runs into her first love Atlas Corrigan (Brandon Sklenar), her relationship with Ryle takes a turn for the worse.

There was a lot of backlash over the casting for the film. Many thought that the actors chosen were too old for the roles and they weren’t who the fans had previously envisioned. Although I read the book, I didn’t have anybody in mind so that didn’t bother me too much. I just decided to go into it as blindly as I could. I actually ended up being pleasantly surprised.

Lively gave a powerful performance as our protagonist. I’ve been a fan of hers for a while now and the way in which she portrayed each of Lily’s mannerisms and emotions was spot on. Sklenar worked perfectly as Atlas; his chemistry with Lively was exactly what I had hoped it would be. Jenny Slate, who played Lily’s best friend Allysa, and Hasan Minhaj who was Allysa’s husband provided some much needed comic relief. I was also very impressed with Isabela Ferrer and Alex Neustaedter who took on the roles of young Lily and Atlas. The former was almost like a carbon copy of Lively, it was insane. The only person I had a problem with was Baldoni as Ryle. He simply was not convincing enough for me.

The subject matter at play here is not for the faint hearted. Domestic violence is something that men and women deal with all the time and that question of whether the victim should stay or leave is not as black and white as everyone thinks it is. I thought the way in which this was depicted on screen was very tastefully done. It took some time for those who weren’t aware to figure out exactly what was going on and it really made you feel for every character in the situation.

I was one of those skeptical people who wasn’t sure if It Ends With Us should be made into a film. While I did enjoy the book on some level, I understand those people who didn’t. It was much better than I was expecting it to be and it certainly tugged on my heartstrings! Despite how heavy it got at times, I did love seeing Lily Bloom’s come to life as well as ogling all the fashion choices and digging the soundtrack.

Rating: ♥️♥️♥️