I read the book a few weeks ago and LOVED it. I knew I could never get John to read the book but getting him to watch the movie would be much easier. So, I went down to Safeway, rented it, and within 5 minutes of putting it in, I knew I was not going to like the movie.
The movie was nothing like the book, they didn't even keep the same names. How disheartening. The whole reason I wanted John to read it was because of the message behind the story. If you haven't read the book I'll do a quick recap (Spoiler Alert!):
Kim (the husband) and Krickitt (the wife..nickname, not real name) met over the phone. She was going to school in California and he was a baseball coach in New Mexico...or was it Arizona....pretty sure it was New Mexico. Anyway, Krickitt was very athletic, she was a gymnast, her family was a big sports family as well, and she worked at a sporting goods store. Kim called the store to order some coach jackets out of their catalog and that's how they met. It started with a couple business calls, then went to personal calls, then to a face to face meeting, and then they fell in love. One of the things that they had in common was their relationship with God...well, kinda. They were both Christians and their faith was really important to both of them, on their first date they pulled out the Bible and read Job (ironic considering their journey), but Kim says that Krickett's faith was inspiring because it was so much stronger than his. He proposed, they got married, she moved to New Mexico, and they were very happy. They were on their way over to hear parent's house for Thanksgiving...or was it Christmas....one of those, they were on their way over to celebrate the holiday with family and they got into an awful car accident. I mean, really horrific car accident. The way he described it in the book the car had flipped onto it's top, skidded quite a long ways, when he woke up he felt blood dripping on his face then realized that it wasn't his blood- Krickett was hanging from the roof of the car still in her seat belt and it was her blood dripping onto him but she was completely lifeless. He thought she was dead. Long story short some passerby's called 911, pulled him out of the car (and his friend who they were giving a ride) and they were rushed to the emergency room. He was told that she had a 1% chance of living.
By the grace of God she made it, but she didn't remember anything from the past year or so (they had only been together for about a year) and she didn't remember anything about their relationship together. She was in the hospital for a very long time, she went through major rehab because she couldn't walk or do anything. The doctors said that the reason she survived and was able to recover like she did was because she was so athletic before the accident. Kim and Krickitt had a really long journey. She tried living at their apartment but it was too hard for her, she didn't remember anything. She went to stay with her parents and he flew out to see her every week ( I think her parents were in Arizona and he was in New Mexico). They fought; they had a really hard time accepting what had happened to them, she didn't like him and couldn't imagine falling in love with him, but their faith in God and their belief in staying true to their vows is what kept them together. That's what I wanted John to see in this movie. That this couple had a hell of a rough patch, I mean, the worst thing any couple could ever go through together...but they kept true to their vows...hence the title The Vow. In the end she fell in love with him again, he fell in love with the new Krickitt, they renewed their vows, went on their second honeymoon, and now have 2 kids, but she never regained her memory.
I'm frustrated because this movie didn't do their story justice. In this movie she was flirting with her ex and kissed him, there was this whole dramatic ordeal with her parents that wasn't remotely close to the relationship she had with her parents or his (his were not dead in the book, his dad was actually a huge support) and the biggest kicker, in the movie they got divorced. What's the point of making a movie whose whole premise is based off of the idea of a couple never breaking their vow, when Hollywood changes it and does have them break their vow??
