I went into Verity hoping the movie would do one very important thing the book did not:

Tell me who the hell is lying. It did not.

I Thought the Verity Movie Would Finally Explain the Ending

So now, eight years after the book came out, I am once again questioning Verity, Jeremy, the manuscript, the letter under the floorboards, and apparently my own ability to judge fictional people.

Let’s discuss.

First, the movie stays pretty close to the book

Book adaptations always have to cut something. Otherwise, we’d be sitting in the theater for six hours while someone dramatically acts out every internal thought.

But Verity keeps the parts that matter most.

Lowen taking over Verity’s book series. Her growing relationship with Jeremy. The manuscript. The increasingly creepy realization that Verity may be a lot more aware of what’s happening around her than everyone thinks.

And yes, we get THAT scene.

If you remember Lowen being with Jeremy and suddenly seeing Verity walking down the stairs and watching them, it is just as unsettling on screen as you would hope.

There are a few jump scares sprinkled in too, and Anne Hathaway deserves a lot of credit here because apparently she can make simply TURNING HER HEAD feel threatening.

A skill I did not know she had.

I forgot how disturbing the beginning was

One thing I was convinced the movie added was the opening scene where Lowen witnesses a man die on the streets of New York and ends up covered in blood.

I did not remember that happening in the book at all. It does. I checked.

There are some smaller details from the book that don’t make it into the movie, including additional reasons Lowen has to question whether Jeremy is telling her the whole truth.

But I never felt like the movie gutted the story or changed it into something completely different.

The casting works

There are really only three people you need to sell this story, and all three do their jobs.

Dakota Johnson makes a great Lowen. She feels curious enough to keep digging, while also giving off the appropriate amount of, “Girl, perhaps you should leave this house.”

Josh Hartnett is Jeremy, which is obviously very important information for millennials. Still got it.

And then there is Anne Hathaway.

I would like to formally request more scary Anne Hathaway movies.

She barely has to do anything. A look. A stare. A tiny movement. Suddenly you’re uncomfortable.

She is extremely good at making you wonder whether Verity is helpless, calculating, terrifying, or somehow all three at once.

The movie has fun with Verity’s fame

One thing I loved was seeing Verity as a celebrity author instead of simply being told she was one.

Her books all have coordinated covers and branding. You immediately understand that she has built this massive career.

She also appears in recognizable media, including Call Her Daddy, an interview with Gayle King, and Hot Ones.

That last one comes back later in a way that is supposed to help us understand Verity better.

Did it help me? No. More on that shortly.

There’s also a Colleen Hoover cameo. She appears as the receptionist when Lowen first goes to meet Jeremy.

It’s quick enough that people unfamiliar with the book probably won’t notice, but readers will.

We need to talk about that house

The setting itself is perfect.

Remote Vermont. Lake. Trees. Isolation. Plenty of places where a person could stare at you from a window and ruin your entire evening.

The house itself? WTF was that?

I imagined a beautiful, dark, expensive estate.

Instead, we got something that looked like an architect had been told to design a home that would make everyone slightly uncomfortable. Maybe that was intentional. If so, congratulations. It worked.

And then we get to THE LETTER

This is the part that made the book so maddening, and the movie keeps it intact.

Lowen finds Verity’s manuscript, which paints Verity as an absolutely horrific person.

Then she finds the letter hidden under the floorboards claiming the manuscript was never the truth.

So now we have two completely different versions of Verity.

One says she did terrible things. The other says Jeremy misunderstood everything.

And somehow we’re expected to make a decision with THAT information?!

I really thought the movie would give us an answer

This was my biggest question going in. Would the movie finally confirm which version was true?

Nope.

At the end, the movie brings back Verity’s appearance on Hot Ones, where she talks about manipulating the truth.

And I am sure this is meant to be very clever and mysterious.

Instead, I would like clarification. Which truth did you manipulate, Verity?

• The manuscript?
• The letter?
• Did you love your children?
• Did you hate them?
• Was Jeremy dangerous?
• Were you dangerous?

I need charts. I need exhibits. I need someone to approach the bench.

So which is better, the book or the movie?

I’m calling it a tie.

The movie captures the same creepy, addictive quality that made the book such a huge hit, and I didn’t notice any major changes that made me wonder why the filmmakers messed with something that already worked.

If you liked The Housemaid, especially the movie adaptation, this lands in a similar place.

And if you loved the Verity book, I think you’ll be happy with the adaptation.

My only complaint is that I walked in hoping to finally get closure and walked out with the same question I had after reading the book.

Who is telling the truth?

Because I still have no idea, but if I had to choose, I’m saying Verity’s letter under the floorboards, and it’s because of her son Crew admitting to chatting with his mom. If she hated him, she wouldn’t talk to him, right? Right?!?!

And at this point, I’m starting to think Colleen Hoover doesn’t want us to know.

Which is probably exactly why we’re still arguing about this book eight years later.