‘Reminders of Him’: Heartbreak, Hope, and Colleen Hoover’s Strongest Film Yet
Colleen Hoover has been on an upward trajectory in the realm of cinema. With It Ends With Us, Regretting You, and now Reminders of Him, the author turned screenwriter has shown a strong presence in theaters for three years straight. Reminders of Him is the first film adaptation to feature Hoover as a writer adapting her own work, and the film benefits from it, sticking the landing between soap opera-level melodrama and schmaltzy sentimentality. It’s a difficult genre to execute properly. If the movie takes itself too seriously, it becomes excruciatingly difficult to endure, and if not taken seriously enough, it becomes a laughable farce. There’s a fine line with little room for deviation on either side, and Hoover, just like Goldilocks, manages to find the sweet spot that lands just right.
Director Vanessa Caswill understands the world that Hoover’s characters inhabit. It’s a world filled with unbreakable hope and the endurance of love in the face of overwhelming sadness. This is the first major, theatrically released feature film Caswill has helmed, but she’s had plenty of practice behind the camera. In 2017, she directed the BBC’s limited series Little Women, and in 2023, she directed Netflix’s romantic comedy Love at First Sight. She’s well-versed in stories centered on matters of the heart and has a keen eye for directing heavy subject matter. And there will be few movies released this year with heavier subjects than Reminders of Him.
The story in Reminders of Him
The story revolves around Kenna Rowan (Maika Monroe, Longlegs), a young woman newly released from prison after being convicted of a vehicular manslaughter charge related to the death of her boyfriend, Scotty (Rudy Pankow, Uncharted).
She has a young daughter, Diem, whom she’s never met, now being raised by the parents of her deceased boyfriend. Every decision she makes is driven by her desire to meet her daughter and the hope of establishing some relationship. To complicate things, Kenna falls for Ledger Ward (Tyriq Withers, I Know What You Did Last Summer), Scotty’s best friend. Kenna exists, drowning in the darkness of the tragedy that has defined her life.
Maika Monroe and Tyriq Withers commit to the melodrama
The dialogue is cheesy, and most of the characters’ decisions make no sense, but it’s forgivable within the context of the narrative. The drama and the heartache are the driving forces, and Ledger serves as the reminder that Kenna still deserves happiness, though finding it won’t be easy. Ledger is the type of character who almost certainly only exists in fiction. He’s wealthy, handsome, and unbelievably kind. He’s designed to be the perfect man who sees the good inside of Kenna. On the surface, he’s flawless, while Kenna is visibly broken.
In reality, their relationship makes no sense. Ledger is a sought-after bachelor who owns his own home, a successful bar, and is building his dream house. While Kenna is a convicted felon who works as a grocery bagger and lost custody of her daughter after accidentally killing her boyfriend in a vehicle crash. It’s difficult to imagine that the two would be so drawn to one another, and the movie does little to explain the basis of their relationship beyond true love’s ability to conquer all obstacles and break down all barriers.
The chemistry between Monroe and Withers is solid, and their commitments to the often implausible nature of the soap opera story keep it grounded. Lauren Graham (Gilmore Girls) and Bradley Whitford (Get Out, TheCabin in the Woods) deliver strong performances as the grieving parents forced to raise their granddaughter. Graham pushes the melodrama harder than Whitford, who mostly feels like an outsider looking in.
The fractured relationship between Kenna and the parents of her deceased boyfriend is among the most prominent story arcs, and it’s the one that leans heaviest into the cheesier aspects of the story. Conflict arises, persists, and is resolved with minimal effort or logical explanation.
Final thoughts on Reminders of Him
Reminders of Him is not a perfect film, but it excels within the melodramatic genre it exists in. All the clichés and tropes are present: unlikely love, family turmoil, hope lost, and hope regained. It’s a movie that knows its audience and plays to those particular strengths. It certainly won’t please everybody, but with a modest budget and a fan-favorite author’s name attached, it doesn’t have to. Furthermore, it’s the best Colleen Hoover adaptation we’ve seen yet.
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