Verity – Budget of $40 million – 1 hour and 57 minutes
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Lowen finishes her lackluster book signing and walks to her appointment. She stands at an intersection, waiting for a light to change, and a car hits a messenger. His blood splatters on her face. Jeremy asks if she is okay, but she is despondent. He walks her into a restaurant’s men’s bathroom. She takes off her shirt and washes her face. Jeremy takes off his shirt and hands it to Lowen. He doesn’t understand why she’s so calm. She admits her mother died of cancer last week. Jeremy confesses his daughter, Harper, died in a boating accident last spring. They part ways, and Lowen meets her agent, Corey, at Hachette Book Group. Amanda greets them and introduces them to her client’s husband, Jeremy. Jeremy’s wife is Verity Crawford. She was in an accident and can’t finish her contract. Since Lowen is in the same genre, they want Lowen to use Verity’s notes to ghostwrite the series. Verity had 3 books left in her contract. Lowen will get $25,000 per book. She fears she can’t do it because Verity wrote from the villain’s perspective. She asks everyone but Jeremy to leave. Jeremy explains that Lowen was one of Verity’s favorite authors, and she thought Lowen had a unique voice. Then, he warns Lowen that they are lowballing her. Jeremy invites Lowen to stay in their Vermont home. She can use Verity’s notes to complete the novels. Corey feels something is off, but Lowen needs a place to stay. She’s being evicted.
Lowen arrives and meets Jeremy’s son, Crew, and Verity’s nurse, Anna. Lowen asks to meet Verity. Jeremy walks Lowen to their bedroom, and Lowen holds back a gasp. Jeremy says Verity crashed her car into a tree. She can’t move her body, but she can still blink, eat, drink, and breathe. Jeremy shows Lowen the guestroom, the guest bathroom, and Verity’s office. Later, Lowen gets comfortable in Verity’s office. She goes through her things and finds a pack of cigarettes. She opens the box and finds an engraved flash drive hidden inside. Lowen plugs it into the computer and reads Verity’s unpublished autobiography, titled ‘So Be It.’ Inside, Verity scoffs at the notion of writing an autobiography. She believes writers are too busy wanting to be liked to be honest. She promises not to make that mistake. Verity warns her reader, ‘There is no light where we’re going. Darkness ahead.’ Lowen will be trapped in Verity’s mind. Can she trust Verity’s written word?
Based on Colleen Hoover’s Verity, this emotional entanglement thriller stays close to the material (FTC Affiliate Disclaimer). It is gripping, sexy, and scary. The opening starts with a stale book reading, and then a horrible crash. This moment snatches the viewers’ attention. The pace slows as Lowen meets the family and reads the autobiography. But each chapter gets more disturbing, adding a new twist. You will squirm in your seat as you learn more horrifying tales about Verity. The tension grows between Lowen and Jeremy as they share intimate moments. She mirrors the life she reads. The tension boils over when Lowen reads the last sentence. That statement will leave your jaw on the floor. This film accomplishes a final-act twist. You will debate what to believe for hours. The director carefully shot this film to make you question what you are seeing. Turning Lowen’s dream into a nightmare will haunt and titillate you. You don’t need to read the book to enjoy this film. Viewers should prepare for a thriller with more questions than answers.
I give it 4.5 out of 5 stars
I’ve seen worse – Jeremy
I thought you would be older – Anna
You don’t even know them – Corey
We’re good people – Lowen
The truth – Verity
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Categories: Anne Hathaway, Brady Wagner, dakota johnson, In The Theater, Ismael Cruz Córdova, Josh Hartnett, movie, review, Verity
