{"id":8277,"date":"2012-07-11T16:44:17","date_gmt":"2012-07-11T14:44:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/pinartarhan.com\/blog\/?p=8277"},"modified":"2012-07-11T16:44:17","modified_gmt":"2012-07-11T14:44:17","slug":"the-vow-starring-channing-tatum-rachel-mcadams-and-jessica-lange","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pinartarhan.com\/blog\/the-vow-starring-channing-tatum-rachel-mcadams-and-jessica-lange\/","title":{"rendered":"The Vow starring Channing Tatum, Rachel McAdams and Jessica Lange"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"The-Vow-Movie-Poster<\/a>
The-Vow-Movie-Poster with Channing Tatum and Rachel McAdams. Image via disneydreaming.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Vow is Worth Seeing: Feat. Channing Tatum, Rachel McAdams, Scott Speedman & Jessica Lange<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Premise<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sculptor Paige (Rachel McAdams<\/a>) and record studio owner Leo (Channing Tatum) are happily married and deeply in love \u2013 until they have a car accident that gives Paige selective amnesia- the last 5 years of her life are completely gone, all of 5 years in which she met and has been with Leo. Leo does his best to help, but things get complicated when Paige\u2019s parents (Sam Neill and Jessica Lange), who she hasn\u2019t spoken to in 5 years, show up and want to make a fresh start by taking advantage of her lost memories (and anger towards them.) Leo somewhat manages to persuade Paige to come back with him, but whatever he does seem to either upset or annoy Paige so she decides to stay with her parents for a while.<\/p>\n

And not only she doesn\u2019t remember Leo at all, the last thing she remembers is being in love with her ex-fianc\u00e9, Jeremy (Scott Speedman)- who is more than willing to take her back as he was never really over her in the first place.<\/p>\n

We are given lovely flashbacks to how their relationship has been like, making us root for her and Leo- with or without her regaining her memory.<\/p>\n

Can Leo make her fall in love with her again? Can he really handle that his wife only seems to be developing a crush towards him when he is madly in love with her? Will Paige\u2019s memory ever come back, and how long can Leo hang on before having to let go?<\/p>\n

I Loved It, but I\u2019d Planned on Hating It.<\/strong><\/p>\n

I was so ready to find The Vow mediocre, yet I loved it. OK, for me to find it bad would have been strange – given that I love Rachel McAdams and can\u2019t resist a good-looking lead, in this case Channing Tatum, who plays a very romantic character.<\/p>\n

But come on. Amnesia and the question whether true love could conquer that? It sounded like a Nicholas Sparks novel. But then again, had he written it, either Rachel\u2019s or Channing\u2019s character would probably end up dead. They don\u2019t die, so consider this one a very positive and needed \u201cspoiler.\u201d<\/p>\n

But The Vow, especially for the diehard romantics, is touching and heartwarming. While it has more clich\u00e9s than we can count, it makes them work and at the end of the day, it is all that matters.<\/p>\n

The Clich\u00e9s: Good and Bad<\/strong><\/p>\n

-Two beautiful people deeply in love. Oh, and not an ounce of fat or flaw on either of them.<\/p>\n

– A great cast (Jessica Lange, Sam Neill as parents. And I like McAdams too), with many pretty actors: Channing Tatum, Rachel McAdams, Scott Speedman (Underworld, Underworld Evolution, 24th Day<\/a>), Dillon Casey (Nikita), Lucas Bryant (Haven<\/a>).<\/p>\n

-Amnesia.<\/p>\n

-The compromising mother who just accepts everything because\u2026\u2026Nah. See the movie. But if I had a dime every time the married got away with what he did\u2026.<\/p>\n

The Vow: The Perks<\/strong><\/p>\n

– Good soundtrack<\/p>\n

– Great emotional\/entertaining moments.<\/p>\n

– A happy ending that is quite realistic that is based on a true story.<\/p>\n

– The ex wasn\u2019t a cheater and\/or a jackass.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Why It Can Win You Over \u2013 despite the clich\u00e9s<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Vow won me over. Because as typical as the storyline was, it was still hard not to feel empathy for all the characters (apart from maybe Jessica Lange and Sam Neill\u2019s-at least until towards the end.)<\/p>\n

I loved the little details such as how Leo won his sister-in-love over with the made-up Thom Yorke (front man of Radiohead) story, and how the story pretty much ended on a better note for everyone (except for one- you can guess who.)<\/p>\n

And in the end, it is the right amount of cheesy yet heartfelt romance. What if it is a chick flick? It is a darn good one. If you want to cut down romance and see a different kind of film from McAdams, watch The Lucky Ones or Red Eye. If you want the romance to be a background device and comedy in the center, watch Morning Glory.<\/p>\n

Hell, if you want Scott Speedman winning the girl\u2019s heart, watch Underworld Evolution. It\u2019s filled with vampires and werewolves and Speedman plays a hybrid. And I do prefer him with long hair anyway.<\/p>\n

But as far as romantic escapism goes, it is a pretty good one.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Criticisms <\/strong><\/p>\n

Audiences love oversimplifying things. Some people are calling Paige a bitch, whereas some find Leo a stupid, insensitive jerk. Guess what? They are all right. And all wrong. Because they both needed help, and they just needed to empathize a bit more. And where was the therapy?<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Leo and Paige needed therapy, you just can\u2019t deal with something on your own \u2013 especially when no one involved can be impartial. Yeah- and a separate therapy session for her family please.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

But people make mistakes, hurt each other and if there is a way to come back from it, they do. Whether the relationship is worth it makes all the difference. Theirs was.<\/p>\n

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Recommended for:<\/strong><\/p>\n

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