“Reminders of Him” (2026) adapts Colleen Hoover’s 2022 novel, which is Hoover’s third film adaptation and first of two for 2026. It is Hoover’s world, and we’re just living in it. The story sounds like a writing challenge. How can a man, Ledger Ward (Tyriq Withers), sleep with his best friend’s girlfriend, Kenna Towan (Maika Monroe), who, according to the premise, killed his best friend, and everyone cosign it? How can she convince the best friend’s parents, Grace (Lauren Graham) and Patrick (Bradley Whitford), to let her see her five-year-old daughter, Diem (Zoe Kosovic)?
Monroe is a good actor, and she must have bills to pay because this role may be her most mainstream, conventional role. Earlier this year, she played a local drug king pin, and she is usually a staple of horror and/or sci fi films, not a romantic lead. A Hoover heroine is a wide step in a different direction, but Monroe treats the material as if it is profound. As the working-class woman from the wrong side of the tracks who cannot get a break, she is denied entry into the pearly gates of suburbia and middle-class respectability without going through some tribulations to prove her worthiness. She wears booty jean shorts, mid drift shirts and a plaid shirt as a jacket. In flashbacks, she is bathed in the sun, which is important because there are at least three versions of Coldplay’s “Yellow,” an original and two covers, that plays in “Reminders of Him.” Her greatest traits are working hard, writing letters to her dead boyfriend, Scotty Landry (Rudy Pankow), and her desire to see her daughter. Also, Lady Diana (Monika Myers), a neighborhood kid, has taken a shine to her. Of course, no one who loved Scotty knows who she really is. The movie leaves one major cliff hanger question unanswered: what is the milk crate for?
What are the levels of attractiveness required to be marketable as the lead in an interracial romance movie at peak racist global default settings? Academic studies need to be done. Withers is a hot ticket. Monroe and Withers look leaner and harder in “Reminders of Him” than they do in their earlier films. Initially the transformation is a bit of a shock, but it is easier to get used to it as the movie unfolds. Withers’ hair rose to the level of a separate character to gauge the date and mood. Ledger is an ex-Broncos pro-football player who appears to have dedicated his life to being a goody two shoes. He lives across the street from the Ledgers and acts as if he is a surrogate son to the Landry grandparents, a father figure to Diem and a person who vaguely gives people a second chance in life according to his bartender, Roman (Nicholas Duvernay), and by implication pregnant waitress Mary Anne (Hilary Jardine). Ledger is whoever he needs to be depending on the scene, and it gets ridiculous when he behaves like the grandparents’ personal bodyguard protecting them from this wisp of a woman. Of course, before he knew who Kenna was, he thought she was hot, and the real excuse is for him to lay his hands on her without any sexual connotation….for now. A movie rule is that the two hottest people must get together, and the whole movie takes its precious time getting to the point, but it is so bad that it becomes good again. At least it is not “It Ends with Us” (2024). No third rails here to navigate around.
Writer Lauren Levine introduces every supporting character as if they will be pivotal for the entire movie, but most are not, and it makes the movie easily mistaken for a television series pilot. It felt like a missed opportunity not to expand the jail scenes. Ruth (Jennifer Robertson) is the landlord at Paradise Apartments which looks anything but; however, she distributes kittens for a discount on the rent. Introducing a movie with a group of kittens is not a bad idea to get people to stay tuned though maybe show someone grabbing kitty litter and a can of food at the supermarket. Amy (Lainey Wilson, who is apparently a famous country singer making her first onscreen appearance) works at the supermarket, Gage’s Groceries or G&G, and shows pity on Kenna when she is trying to get a job. It turns out that Paradise Apartments is a cozy, neighborly place despite its rough appearance and Ruth’s constant sniping at Doug (Rick Koy), an electric guitar player.
The only two supporting characters who matter are the grandparents and the child, who has not a single, age-appropriate friend. Whitford did too good of a job in “Get Out” (2017) so whenever his character said something sincere to Ledger, it felt sinister, especially since Patrick has a habit of being too comfortable and just popping up at all of Ledger’s properties regardless of location. Patrick visited Ledger next door to his home less frequently. Also, it was pretty rich considering how protective he was of their property. As a nation, all of America has been groomed to love Graham on sight, which probably gives more of a margin of grace to Grace than that character normally would have because she is a nightmare and would be hateful if another actor played her. What do you mean “my son’s daughter?” Did he give birth to her in the grave? The mental gymnastics and panic were absurd. Scotty died in a car accident, not Kenna’s sword. The characters in “A Good Person” (2023) would look at them as if they are weird. If Whitford and Graham were not pros, these characters would be the worst. Kosovic is already a good little actor and was organic while simultaneously seeming older than she appears behind the eyes in certain scenes, especially with Withers as if she is assessing the situation on a deeper level. She is going to play JonBenét Ramsey later, and please, no.
Side note: does Laramie, Wyoming have a robust taxi service? If you are looking for more Black people outside of Ledger’s circle, then call a cab. As a New Yorker who travels, it can be hard to find a cab, but there were at least two cab services in this movie, which is impressive. So it is in fiction, may it be in reality. I only noticed one of the cab drivers is Black, but I then wanted to follow him and find out what that side of town was doing. Certainly not having Tom Howe’s score playing in the background telling them how to feel about a situation. Everything was so over the top dramatic that I imagined the cab driver reporting at home how gonzo these folks are. I bet it does not rain dramatically in that part of town.
Besides the weather, the lighting was an obvious way to take the scene’s temperature. Subtlety, we don’t know her. Fun fact. “Reminders of Him” is a Mother’s Day film so it was a missed opportunity to not release it later. Hoover films are getting better, but they just have better production values than television movies. This kind of fare used to appear on a network channel on a Sunday night, but then characters could not say “asshole.” If you want to see pretty people be sad in a pretty place until they work it out, then definitely check it out unless you have Withers at home, then save your money.
