One of my most favorite things is a movie where you can’t quite tell if you’re laughing with it… or at it. Movies like The Swarm, Plan 9 from Outer Space, and The Brain From Planet Arous have been my most joyful film-going experiences.

There will be no schlocky slander in this house.

Friends, let me get this out of the way: I haven’t read Verity. I actually know nothing about the book, so I went into this pulpy little thriller with clear eyes and an open heart.

I had only one expectation… I needed unapologetic, campy schlock. You know the type, something halfway between a Lifetime movie and a 1978 made-for-TV movie. That’s not too hard… right? RIGHT?

I’m not even going to try and summarize this movie. I wouldn’t do it justice anyway. Head to IMDb, you’ll figure it out.

For those who are a little nervous… this will be spoiler-free. Granted, I’m not sure I could spoil the third act if I tried. It wouldn’t make sense. Trust me.

The third act of this film is so wacky, over-the-top, and melodramatic that I only wish the first 75 percent of the film could reach that level of kooky.

Pacing was really my biggest struggle with Verity. Throughout the film, there were glimmers of the unrestrained chaos I wanted to see. I needed to see Anne Hathaway let her inner Bette Davis flag fly, and when she’s on-screen in this one, she’s in rare form. It turns out, I’m obsessed with evil Anne Hathaway.

However, when the story isn’t focusing on Hathaway, Dakota Johnson struggles to keep things moving. I hate to say it, but there’s little pulling Johnson’s portrayal of author Lowen Ashleigh out of slightly generic, chick-lit main character territory. We watch the story through her eyes, and she becomes our primary figure of identification, and I wanted something more. There were hints of an edginess, perhaps even a shiftiness in this woman, but nothing was ever really allowed to shine through.

As a millennial for whom Pearl Harbor was a formative film, it kills me to say that I also struggled with Josh Hartnett’s portrayal of Jeremy. I love the ongoing Josh Hartnett renaissance of 2025 and 2026, but from his very first scene, I really didn’t trust Jeremy. The issue is, I felt like I was supposed to. Hartnett plays him as a loving but rather disconnected husband. We’re supposed to sympathize with him. 

I’ll say it, disconnected husbands don’t play as sympathetic and trustworthy in 2026.

I kept waiting for the Lifetime Original Movie “Men Are Awful and Will Kill You” twist. I figured it had to be coming, and as I said, the third act does not disappoint when it lets itself go. 

I take that back… I found myself wanting it to lean into more of the crazy. There are certain arcs I felt needed more time to sizzle. Let Anne Hathaway act for the cheap seats! There’s no fear in leaning into the weird if you have fun with it.

I had fun with Verity, and judging by the laughter in my theater, the audience did too. I love a movie that’s not afraid to get a little over-the-top, and I wasn’t expecting to have so much fun with this Anne Hathaway performance. I want lots more of THIS Anne Hathaway. She’s having such fun playing Verity Crawford, and I’m here for it. She should have had far more scenery to chew.

Verity opens October 2nd in theaters around the country.