⭐️✨ 1.5

2026 is shaping up to be a major year for Anne Hathaway, following a string of diverse film and blockbuster appearances. The versatile actress now tackles a new psychological thriller, which she also helped produce, based on Colleen Hoover’s bestselling novel of the same name. Hathaway stars as the world-renowned author Verity Crawford, alongside Dakota Johnson as struggling writer Lowen Ashleigh, and Josh Hartnett as Jeremy Crawford, Verity’s husband.

The story follows Lowen Ashleigh, who is hired to complete the remaining books in a successful series after Verity is left paralyzed by a tragic accident. However, when I call it a thriller, I am basing that strictly on the marketing and trailers rather than the actual end product. I am struggling to find any real positives here. In truth, this is one of the most boring and uneventful films I have seen in an age. While not the absolute worst movie ever made, it is remarkably weak. Very little happens for the vast majority of the runtime, and story development is slow. At just under two hours, the film finally attempts to go up a gear in the final 20 minutes, but it is far too late to salvage this bore and care about the characters.

The only highlight is Anne Hathaway, who delivers another strong performance despite her talent being entirely wasted in this production. From the very beginning, the narrative drags. Vital plot details and character motivations are clumsily buried or only addressed much later. For instance, during an early book reading scene, Lowen appears visibly disengaged and disconnected from her audience, and the reason for this, her mother’s recent death, is withheld until much later. Throughout the film, viewers are evidently expected to read heavily between the lines. Even when final revelations are made in the climax, they leave critical elements hanging rather than offering a satisfying payoff.

The film suffers from a lack of actual thrills, with weak sound engineering. Furthermore, the direction and editing result in a pacing issue so severe that the film feels almost 90 minutes too long. As an Amazon MGM Studios release, this will likely hit streaming platforms fairly quickly. Just pass on this one as we walked away deeply disappointed. A real let-down and I certainly did not pick up on any audience buzz in the theatre.

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Trailer, synopsis and score below.

The film adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s bestselling psychological thriller follows struggling writer Lowen Ashleigh, who is hired by Jeremy Crawford to complete the remaining books of his incapacitated wife Verity after a sudden accident leaves her catatonic. While moving into the Crawford family home to review Verity’s notes, Lowen uncovers a hidden, deeply disturbing autobiographical manuscript filled with chilling confessions about the family’s dark past and tragic losses. As Lowen develops a romantic connection with Jeremy, she becomes increasingly terrified of the woman upstairs, trapped between wondering if Verity’s writings are the fictional creations of a master manipulator or a genuine warning from a dangerous monster.

Online synopsis 

Film Rating

Music/Sound

1 out of 5

Story/plot

2 out of 5

Acting/Performances

4 out of 5

Overall

1.5 out of 5

Certification: 15
Running time: 114 minutes
Screening type: 2D