Broken Vows (2016) – Film Review
Director: Bram Coppens
Cast: Jamie Alexander, Wes Bentley, Cam Gigandet
Certificate: 15
by Roger Crow
Some films are so bad, you can’t wait for them to be over. Others tread a fine line between badness and mediocrity, and yet keep you hooked.
Such is the case with Broken Vows, a movie which keeps me watching because of the solid casting of Jamie (Thor) Alexander and Wes (American Beauty) Bentley. She’s Tara, the fiancée preparing for her wedding. He’s Patrick, the mysterious barman who seduces her. They have a night of wild passion, and when he shows signs of obsessive behaviour, she wisely runs a mile.
“Great heroine”
It’s the sort of movie on around 3.15 most weekdays on Channel 5, only with swearing and mild violence. The script is certainly Channel 5 worthy. One scene at a stables with the psycho stalker and a horse rider is lamentable for her underwritten script, lame acting and weak direction.
So why can’t I stop watching? I imagine it’s because Bentley makes such a good psycho, and Alexander is a great heroine, even if the director does little to hide the continuity of a mole on her face that swaps sides every so often. I’m guessing there was no budget for CG effects every time he flipped a frame to make the scene look better.
“Trashy escapism”
While her fiancé is pretty generic, he does at least make Bentley appear more interesting. This is essentially gender-reversed Fatal Attraction revamped for the VOD market, and though utterly unremarkable, if you’re in the mood for trashy escapism, it ticks that box admirably.
If nothing else it reminds viewers to keep an eye on their phone or at least lock it, because in the wrong hands, a mobile can become a weapon. The suspense is bearable as our photogenic heroine and her friend try to salvage the wedding with a series of phone calls. And don’t miss that finale where you just know things aren’t going to be resolved easily.
Slick, glossy nonsense but strangely magnetic.
4/10
‘Broken Vows’ is available to watch on Digital Download
