‘Verity’ Review: The Colleen Hoover Nightmare Must End

Verity follows Lowen Ashleigh, played by Dakota Johnson, who is hired to ghost write the final three books of famous author Verity Crawford’s (Anne Hathway) popular book series after her mind becomes paralyzed by a car crash. Her assignment takes a dark turn as she begins to read Verity’s secret autobiography written before the accident. Lowen’s perception of what’s true begins to falter as she dives deeper into the secrets of one of the most successful thriller writers. Verity is based on the book written by Colleen Hoover. This is the best-selling author’s fourth page to screen adaptation, but the first of her many psychological thrillers to get adapted. Does it succeed more than her romances? Read our full review for Verity below. 

To answer the question above, no. If you do not know, I am extremely critical of the three romance films adapted from Colleen Hoover books, those being It Ends With Us, Regretting You, and Reminders of Him. So when I heard we were getting yet another adaptation from her down right deranged body of work, I was not excited to say the least. Then I heard that this was a thriller novel and I got a little more interested. If you have not ever seen or read a Colleen Hoover story, they are insane to say the least. Most having some sort of taboo issue covered in the most careless way possible. Since she can write such strange, often off putting, romances, I thought her actual thrillers must be better, right? No. This film is on the same level of uninspired, confusing, and demented. Hoover loves to add complex themes or storylines, but is unable to create a nuanced narrative or use these topics as anything other than shock value. Studios need to stop adapting her books because no matter the genre, trash is trash either way. 

Now let’s discuss how this works as a thriller. I do not mean to be dramatic, but as someone who has unfortunately seen every Colleen Hoover movie given a major theatrical release, I truly find her romances to be more disturbing than her actual thriller. Reminders of Him is a genuinely sick and twisted movie, while Verity is basically screaming the whole time “Look how sick and twisted I am!” To someone who has never in their life seen a thriller they might be left in shock and awe, but if you have ever seen a single film by David Fincher or Alfred Hitchcock you will be left unamused. Speaking of Hitchcock, it is extremely clear that his work was the main inspiration for the director Michael Showalter. Whether it be the framing, the titlecard, or the plethora of other homages he threw in, you are definitely given the impression that Hitchcock was the main inspiration. Yet, if you are going to dare to invoke the “Master of Suspense,” you should probably make sure you add some. I was left extremely bored for most of the runtime. 

The only compelling figure was Anne Hathaway’s Verity, but she is not the main character. Most of the film is just Dakota Johnson looking through papers and trying to steal the husband of a woman she is led to believe is paralyzed. I was extremely confused on how I was supposed to feel about Johnson’s Lowen Ashleigh. Was she the protagonist or a noisy, unprofessional, male centric buffoon. There are some points when I genuinely believe she is going to come out as a psychopath, but by the end it feels like the movie is trying to make you like her and believe she is the impartial voice in the matter. Johnson can be a great actress but it’s becoming extremely clear that she needs an even better director and script to come off well. Anne Hathaway on the other hand is really strong here. Without her the film would have no redeeming qualities. Hathaway is creepy and menacing while carrying the entire film on her back. The other major player is Josh Hartnett as Verity’s husband and Lowens’s love interest. Hartnett is completely serviceable here, but I would have appreciated more from not only the character but his performance. 

 All that to say, Verity is not as egregious as the past Hoover films. I would rank it second, behind It Ends With Us. It was competently made, having some fun lighting choices and visually striking scenes. The main problem is and always will be the stories. They are simultaneously the most unhinged thing you’ve read and the most drab experience ever. It’s almost impressive how compelling and also dull they are. This is not the worst movie of the year though, that prize has to go to Reminders of Him. You are much better off throwing on Gone Girl, or even The Housemaid, than paying for a ticket to see Verity. 

Verity was directed by Michael Showalter and stars Dakota Johnson, Anne Hathaway, and Josh Hartnett. The film is based on the best selling novel of the same name written by Colleen Hoover and is now playing in theaters.

Thanks for reading this review of Verity. If you liked this article, make sure to check out more reviews here at Feature First.