The Vow

Rating : 8/10
Release Date : 9th March, 2012 (India)
Time : 104 minutes
Director : Michael Suchsy; Writers : Jason Katims, Stuart Sender; Music : Michael Brook, Rachel Portman
Starring : Rachel McAdams, Channing Tatum, Sam Neill, Jessica Lange, Scott Speedman, Jessica McNamee, Tatiana Maslany, Jeannane Goossen, Dillon Casey

Suppose, you got a chance to travel back in time four years of your life and restart your life from that point, without any memory of what you’ve done in those last four years. Do you think you’d end up doing the same things or take a different path ?

Our main protagonist, Rachel McAdams, is happily married to Channing, had left her parents house a few years ago (and is not on talking terms with them), has quit law school to pursue a career as a sculptor and is happy with the life she’s leading. Until an accident happens. Which erases all her memories of the past few years. When she wakes up from her coma, in her head, she is still living with her parents, still going to law school and is engaged to her childhood sweetheart, Scott.

The fact that she doesn’t remember Channing at all, that Channing has never met her parents, that her parents are rich and she & Channing aren’t, the fact that her father is dominating and clearly wants to run her life, while Channing wants her to just be, make for an interesting film.

The subtle humour and moments shown, help keep the film in non-intense territory. From their wedding vows (and ceremony), the forget-me-nots, the chocolate Russian roulette, the blueberry Mojito & sorority girl remark, the ‘you didn’t knock’ to ‘I have to be back by ten in the morning’, the jokes feel real and not the product of a scriptwriters imagination. Incidents like the one involving Channing and her father, Sam, or her fiancée Scott, came across as filmy while the one between Channing and her sisters fiancée, Dillon once about recording studios being a dying industry & then about Radiohead were just right.

Memory is an amazing thing. She remembers the way to her parents house, a conversation with Scott, her moms phone number but not her own house, the fact that she turned vegetarian or her own husband. As Channing points out, we are the sum total of all the moments we have lived. But what if, you forget everyone of those moments ? Channing Tatum and Rachel McAdams give a great performance to make us believe in their predicament and keep us engaged as they figure their way out.

Sliding Doors-esque in its approach, the film raises some pertinent questions about life, the choices we make. We seem to use the word ‘chick flick’ in an almost derogatory fashion. This one is a chick flick, but with a message if you’d care to find it…