‘The Lost Husband‘ is a drama film written and directed by Vicky Wight. It was produced by Six Foot Pictures and distributed by Quiver Distribution and RedBox Entertaiment. It was based on a novel of the same name by Katherine Center which I have not read.

Libby Moran (Leslie Bibb) and her two kids Abby (Callie Hope Haverda) and Tank (Roxton Garcia) have been living with Libby’s mother Marsha (Sharon Lawrence) following the death of her husband in a car accident. After a falling out, Libby moves with her kids to her Aunt Jean’s (Nora Dunn) ranch located outside of Houston, Texas. They meet the ranch hand James O’Connor (Josh Duhamel), Jean’s attorney boyfriend Russ (Isiah Whitlock Jr.), and his failed pop-star daughter Sunshine (Herizen F. Guardiola). For the first time, Libby finds herself that she can grieve, but also struggles in adapting to the simple life at her new home.

On the surface, the movie is not bad. It has a charm to it that makes it enjoyable. All of the actors do a good job, especially Leslie Bibb and Josh Duhamel. They have decent chemistry and that helps the story move along. The child actors also are good. Sometimes, young actors can be annoying, but I did think they were alright and did not deter your attention.

I also liked some of the themes in it. Standing up to bullies, confronting your past, joy in hard work, and that folks of different backgrounds and beliefs can be friends. As for the story, I found the main plot basic, but interesting. It brought nothing new to this sort of romantic drama subgenre of overcoming grief stories, but I did not think it was bad or unwatchable, just not original.

The movie did have these subplot threads that were touched on and most were closed, but I did not understand what they had to do with the film. For instance, Libby and James go to sell goat cheese at a farmer’s market in Houston only for them to run into some awful people that she used to know. I did not understand the point of this five minute sequence, other than for Libby and James to kiss for the first time, but the movie had other opportunities where the scene would have had more meaning.

For the main focus on the theme of grief and learning about growing from it, I thought it did a good job of approaching it with reverence. At times, the movie does move its focus and touch on other themes, but this main point always found its way back to the forefront. For Libby to move on, she has to confront her past and present to move onto the future. The movie played it a bit safer than a lot of films that focus on this, but it never went off the rails.

Bottom line, The Lost Husband is a charming film that has some good performances. It is a perfect movie to watch with your evening coffee or tea for some entertainment.

PARENTAL CONCERNS: Foul language, Thematic elements, Minor Violence, Bullying

FAVORITE QUOTE: It looks like they released the Kraken.

Check out the trailer below:

What do you think? Let me know in the comments below. Tell me if there is a comic book, movie, or novel you would like me to review. While you are at it, check out my movie reviews of The Way Back and Becky. Don’t forget to like, share, and subscribe for more posts like this one.

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