Dull, Slow, Dreary, and Drippy ‘Verity’ Is Unconvincing Absurd Thriller

Dull, Slow, Dreary, and Drippy ‘Verity’ Is Unconvincing Absurd Thriller

By Lynn Venhaus

Beware the unreliable narrator(s). Not giving any spoilers away, but “Verity” is turgid trash, and toys with truth, trust and too many twists to be a satisfying psychological thriller.

Lowen Ashleigh (Dakota Johnson), hired to ghostwrite for wildly successful thriller novelist Verity Crawford (Anne Hathaway), uncovers what appears to be Verity’s autobiographical notes. She wrestles with the confessions about Verity’s husband Jeremy (Josh Hartnett) and finds that separating fiction from reality is challenging.

Adapted by screenwriter Nick Antosca from simplistic novelist Colleen Hoover’s manipulative 2018 best-selling sensation, the movie has that same unconvincing plot formula with cliched characters and a left-field rushed conclusion. With a 1 hour, 58-minute run time, it is also slow and dull.

Most egregious is its hollow heroine Lowen, straining credibility because she is played by the blandest leading lady in Hollywood, Dakota Johnson (winner of not one, but two Golden Raspberry “Razzie” Awards for worst actress – “Madame Web” and “Fifty Shades of Grey”). 

Anne Hathaway, in flashback, as successful thriller writer Verity Crawford.

A nepo baby – her parents are Don Johnson and Melanie Griffith, she has made some strong indies (“Peanut Butter Falcon” and “Cha Cha Real Smooth” succeeded because she could be lowkey in them). But her deadpan delivery is hard to warm up to, particularly in a supposedly sizzling affair.

Johnson’s monotone indifference is annoying because Lowen is a serious writer (sure, let’s believe this), who is good enough to be published but not read or known. She’s waiting in the wings, eager for her big break, and she has a backstory that’s never fully addressed.

When Lowen is conveniently at an intimate birthday dinner with her employer’s husband, she admits to having “resting bored face.” That’s not a stretch, but most of the dialogue is. And the logic throughout is absurd.

Thrown together, because we must have a forbidden love angle while the catatonic wife, in a wheelchair and bed-ridden, creates an overly emotional detour between Lowen and the handsome man of the house – you see that coming from the ‘meet-grisly-cute.’

Dakota Johnson and Josh Hartnett as strangers who meet through tragedy.

Oh, how bizarre. But blood, especially tawdry and titillating, is a recurring motif. So are bite marks. No vampires, however, were harmed in the making of this howl at the moon. We keep hearing about Verity’s vile villains she concocts in her lurid fiction – but in reality, her real-life is more disturbing. Or is it?

Hoover and company, desperately emulating “Gone Girl” with a touch of wannabe Daphne du Maurier, focuses on dark and sinister through characters’ ridiculous whispering and superficial seductiveness. 

Despite having Oscar winner Volker Bertelmann compose the score, the histrionic strings are so on-the-nose with ‘dun-dun-dun’ beats every time something is about to be revealed that it evokes laughter.

Unfortunately, this high-gloss schlock isn’t even a good way to have fun with pretty people being plastic, or a ‘hate-watch,’ with like-minded pals who enjoy snickering over faux raciness.

Verity and Jeremy meet.

Appearing grounded and unfailingly polite, Hartnett does what he can as family man Jeremy Crawford in a thoroughly thankless role. Now that he’s had a career resurgence, with “Trap,” “Oppenheimer,” and “The Bear,” it’s nice to see him play a hunky and caring dad, no matter how much he’s secretly hiding. Because aren’t all male characters in Hoover’s novels not what they appear to be? Dun-dun-dun!

After the disingenuous “It Ends with Us” in 2024, in which Hoover did survivors of domestic abuse no favors by triggering, without any warning, and trivializing toxic relationships, I was furious.

So, loath to try another one of her film adaptations, I changed my mind just to see if I was missing something. Oh no. My first impressions are correct about terrible writing. 

Are studio’s this desperate for content? Apparently so, because she sells a ton of books and movie tickets. Her “Regretting You” and “Reminders of Him” were box office hits. Are these forgettable airport/beach reads?

Ghostwriter Lowen Ashleigh in Verity’s office.

Director Michael Showalter, who directed Anne Hathaway’s charming, breezy romantic comedy “The Idea of You,” Jessica Chastain to an Oscar in “The Eyes of Tammy Faye,” and the superb Oscar-nominated “The Big Sick,” is at the helm, so what happened? 

Did he convince himself he could pull a Paul Feig and hit gold with “A Simple Favor” like success? Perhaps the twisted thriller genre isn’t a good fit, unlike his wildly popular comedies and ‘women’ pictures. Not only are the actions of all involved mostly ludicrous, but the shock values are insincere, especially the ending.

Nevertheless, Hathaway acquits herself by taking the campy route. Looking all glamorous in slinky red outfits and wearing fiery red lipstick, she ramps up the sex appeal as America’s most alluring novelist of popular pulp fiction. Oh look how fun she is on talk shows – and eating chicken wings on “The Hot Ones”!

She lowers her voice a husky register when she’s doing voice-overs of her unnerving autobiography that she left on a USB flash drive hidden in a cigarette box in her desk. Oh, Kathleen Turner in “Body Heat” has nothing on Hathaway here – or Barbara Stanwyck in “Double Indemnity.”

Incapacitated Verity (Anne Hathaway) outdoors in Vermont.

Fully committed as this mystery woman, Hathaway chews the scenery with menace in ‘before’ scenes while looking wan and lifeless, incapacitated by a car accident in ‘after’ scenes, to give a viable contrast. Remember her 15-minute Oscar-winning role as impoverished Fantine in “Les Miserables”?

She may be over-exposed this year in “The Odyssey,” “The End of Oak Street,” and “The Devil Wears Prada 2,” but she’s doing her best Miranda Priestly here in the sole portrayal that works (even if it’s not a shred realistic).

Now, she is bankable. So that’s the one saving grace in the “Verity” sad misfire that has too many unresolved issues and too little to recommend.

“Verity” is a 2026 psychological thriller directed by Michael Showalter and starring Dakota Johnson, Anne Hathaway, and Josh Hartnett. It is Rated R for sexual content, some nudity, language, violence and bloody images, and the run time is 1 hour, 58-minutes. It opens in theatres Oct. 2. Lynn’s Grade: D.

‘Materialists’ Explores Modern Romance Through a Realistic Lens

‘Materialists’ Explores Modern Romance Through a Realistic Lens

By Lynn Venhaus

“Cause the boy with the cold hard cash
Is always Mister Right
‘Cause we are living in a material world
And I am a material girl ” — Madonna

Writer-director Celine Song’s savvy and shrewd spin on modern relationships confronts expectations – and gender politics — without irony.

“Materialists,” her highly anticipated follow up to 2023’s acclaimed Oscar-nominated “Past Lives,” frames a romantic triangle with Song’s experience working at a dating service while she was trying to get her playwrighting career off the ground.

With her keen understanding of male-female dynamics, she presents an honest yet somewhat cynical look exploring intangible romantic love vs. a transactional business deal. Look at all the lonely people! Where do they all come from?

Apparently, many of them are in Manhattan. Another 100 people just got off the train in a city of strangers, some come to work, some to play.

John (Chris Evans), a scruffy still-struggling actor whose main hustle is cater waitering, once lived with and loved Lucy (Dakota Johnson), who ditched acting for the performance artistry of a dating service.

Lucy is a smart single woman whose success as a matchmaker is judged by how many engagements she’s facilitated – whether they ‘checked a lot of boxes’ for lonely, hopeful souls believing in happily ever after, or just satisfying hook-ups.

No longer content to look for love the old-fashioned way, well-heeled New Yorkers put their trust and money into this dating service called Adore. They do the math.

Adore is a carefully curated luxury service where employees work the algorithms, selling happiness like advertising agencies market the sizzle instead of the steak.

In their shallow look for Mr. or Ms. Right, these eager-to-mingle clients draft rigid non-negotiables to Lucy, hoping she will make their largely unattainable dreams come true.

Women discuss height, hairline and salary while men concern themselves with age and BMI. Much of the film’s humor is derived from people’s shopping lists.

While attending two clients’ wedding, Lucy meets Harry (Pedro Pascal), the groom’s suave brother who works in private equity and lives in a $12 million penthouse. Cha-ching. Taking milady out on the town to the ritziest places, he attentively shows her a lavish lifestyle that she could only once fantasize about.

Basically, he’s what they call in the dating biz a “unicorn,” a perfect match. But will the tug from the imperfect one who got away be too much for Lucy to resist? Security vs. uncertainty…Hmmm.

That’s the rom-com rub, but of course, Song isn’t going to go down the road often traveled. She brings fresh insight and an interesting perspective about commitment – even though we are conditioned to reach for the stars.

There is also a sobering subplot involving a dating hopeful named Sophie (Zoe Winters) who hasn’t had any luck moving past the first date. She is disillusioned by the whole mating ritual, and must deal with a scary situation.

The charisma is considerable with Evans and Pascal the as suitors. I’ve always been more lukewarm about Johnson – after all, she won a well-deserved Razzie last year for “Madame Web.” But just as she was in “Peanut Butter Falcon” and “Cha Cha Real Smooth,” she is dialed in and believable, a pleasant surprise.

The movie is book-ended with a caveman courtship in ancient civilization, so the point is made, but in present day, most couples don’t need to unite a kingdom or settle through land and livestock. Point taken, but really, exploring the modern dilemmas works just fine.

Not as profound or lyrical as “Past Lives,” but nonetheless an interesting point of view, “Materialists” charms with its simple straightforward vision.

“Materialists” is a 2025 romantic comedy-drama written and directed by Celine Song and starring Dakota Johnson, Chris Evans, Pedro Pascal and Zoe Winters. Its run time is 1 hour, 56 minutes and it is rated R for language and brief sexual material. It opened in theatres June 13. Lynn’s Grade: B+

‘Our Friend’ Pulls Heartstrings in Family-Focused Feature

‘Our Friend’ Pulls Heartstrings in Family-Focused Feature

 By Lynn Venhaus
In darkest times, you remember who stood by you, was there for you. Based on a true story, “Our Friend” shows how rare and special unconditional friendship is, with earnest performances from Casey Affleck, Jason Segel and Dakota Johnson.

Matt Teague (Casey Affleck) is a journalist and father of two young girls whose wife, Nicole (Dakota Johnson), has terminal cancer. While living in Fairhope, Ala., the family comes to depend on their friend, Dane Faucheux (Jason Segel), who has put his own life on hold to help.

While living in New Orleans, Nicole becomes involved in community theater, where she meets Dane. Her husband Matt and Dane bond as bros, and he becomes a part of their lives, even after moving to a small Alabama town and starting a family.

In 2012, Nicole is diagnosed with cancer, and thus begins a heartbreaking journey until her death, at age 36, in 2014.

The film matter-of-factly depicts the overwhelming demands of coping with a life-altering situation and terminal illness.

The three actors are sincere in their performances and convey the ups-and-downs of life’s curves. It’s tough material, no matter how one approaches it, with a tendency to be maudlin. The sweet and sentimental moments of friendship help smooth the harsh reality of a vibrant young person’s early demise.

Matt Teague was a consultant and executive producer on the film, and his Esquire magazine article, “The Friend,” is the source material for the screenplay. The article won the National Magazine Award. Screenwriter Brad Ingelsby, who wrote “The Way Back” among other Ben Affleck films, captures ordinary people well.

However, the film is hindered by its choppy narrative approach, moving back and forth between the timeline.

Director Gabriela Cowperthwaite, a longtime documentary filmmaker whose 2013 feature “Blackfish” won much acclaim, takes a realistic approach but it needed smoother transitions.

One character that needed more screen time was hospice nurse Faith Pruett, played by the wondrous Cherry Jones.

Still, the film is thoughtful and engaging. “Our Friend” reminds us of the importance of being there for the people we love.

“Our Friend” is a 2019 biographical drama directed by Gabriela Cowperthwaite, starring Casey Affleck, Dakota Johnson and Jason Segel. It is rated R for language and runs 2 hours, 4 minutes. Lynn’s Grade: B-, In theatres and on Video on Demand Jan. 22.