Reminders of Him – Film Review
by Frank L. 

Director – Vanessa Caswill
Writers – Lauren Levine, Colleen Hoover
Stars – Maika Monroe, Bradley Whitford, Tyriq Withers

Based on a novel by Colleen Hoover, Kenna Rowan (Maika Monroe) is in her mid-twenties. Her life has already been crowded with incident as Lady Bracknell might have observed. In her teenage years, she was driving with her boyfriend Scotty Landry (Rudy Pankow) when she lost control of the car. He was killed in the ensuing crash. She served a seven-year prison sentence in relation to her behaviour immediately following the crash. In prison, she gave birth to a daughter whose father was Scotty.

The film begins following her release from prison. She is determined to see her daughter, Diem Landry (Zoe Kosovic). Diem is being brought up by Scotty’s parents, Patrick (Bradley Whitford) and Grace (Lauren Graham), and has been sheltered from the facts surrounding her birth. Patrick and Grace live in suburban calm. Scotty’s great childhood friend, Ledger Ward (Tyriq Withers), lives in the house opposite. When Kenna arrives at Patrick and Grace’s doorstep, she is greeted with horror. She fails to see her daughter. She moves to the local town, which is called “Paradise”. She is penniless, and in order to make ends meet, she takes a job in the local supermarket packing groceries.

Light relief is added to this sad set of facts by a young teenager called Lady Diana (Monika Myers), who also works in the supermarket. She befriends Kenna and has the measure of Ledger, with brief monosyllabic retorts, anytime that he shows up. Patrick and Grace go to court to prevent Kenna from coming near their home. The battle lines are firmly drawn. Gradually, in this tight-knit community, Ledger comes to know a bit more about Kenna, and so the story unfolds. Can you guess where this is going?

Kenna is the dominant character in the story, and Monroe gives a fine performance as she is single-minded in her determination to see her daughter, Diem. Patrick and Grace are equally determined that she will not. The weak link in the chain is Ledger. Monroe is impressive as a young woman living on her wits with nothing to lose. Apart from being a mother, she is also a good-looking young woman who is not averse to romance with the right guy. Monroe portrays convincingly the various forces which are driving Kenna.

Given that the town is called “Paradise”, the unhappy facts which exist at the beginning cannot be allowed to continue unaltered. Sure enough, the story reveals how a chink in the armour of protection which surrounds Diem gradually emerges. When it does, the Landrys, Ledger, and Kenna all have to adjust. The result may not be paradise, but they are all in a better place than they were at the beginning. To that extent, this is a feel-good movie. Monroe’s performance as Kenna is the high point of the film, and she holds the attention of the audience throughout.