A love story clouded by grief and sadness: Reminders of Him (2026) | Film Review

Reminders of Him 2026 | A love story clouded by grief and sadness 

‘Reminders of Him’ is labeled a romance but the story delves much deeper into heavy themes of motherhood, grief and redemption. Centred around the character of Kenna (Maika Monroe), this film follows her treacherous journey to regain the trust of her daughter’s guardians and finally form a bond with her after 7 years incarcerated. Kenna is a resilient character, she is a strong, determined representation of a mother’s resilience. I was utterly surprised by the complex and messy storyline and I am learning this is a running theme with the author’s previous novels, the characters find themselves in ludicrously tangled situations but I can confidently say this film is easily the most compelling and handled those themes with a lot more care than its predecessors. ‘Reminders of Him’ is an easy to consume romantic drama, with an incredibly strong cast who navigate you through the plot and deliver some of those more cringe worthy lines with genuine conviction. 

The cast rectify this films slower moments, the first half structurally was hard to connect with. The pacing was slow and the characters weren’t fully developed but as the film went on, I found myself leaning into the romance and finding connection with the characters. Maika Monroe, Tyriq Withers, Rudy Pankow, Bradley Whitford and Lauren Graham all gave full and heartfelt performances in their respective roles. Monroe is the core of the story and although her character Kenna stays closed off you are still able to understand her trauma. Monroe may be known as a horror actress but she streals the show in this film. Tyriq Withers is easily the stand out, he is an effortless performer who brings charm and charisma to the screen. His performance and his character choices were the strongest and the most memorable, alongside both Whitford and Graham who were able to give convincing supporting roles. The cast are genuinely responsible for my rating of this film, they all brought realistic and emotionally deep characters to screen that I throughly enjoyed watching develop and unfold.

‘Reminders of Him’ was a surprisingly entertaining watch for me, despite the dialogue having clunky moments and the first half of the feature struggling with pacing - the general storyline was a lot deeper than I expected and I liked that. As someone who will usually shy away from romantic features, ‘Reminders of Him’ wasn’t a strict romance and brought layers of emotional depth, grief, redemption, drama and family into the story. 

If you’re a fan of slow burning love stories or the idea of forbidden romance this film could be a perfect fit for you but remember the story also touches on some heavy and heartbreaking themes. My biggest takeaway after watching ‘Reminders of Him’ is not all films are how they appear, this story has heart and I know there is a large audience out there who will fall in love with this soppy, intimate, passionate tale. Also, if you’re looking for a new actor to obsess over, might I suggest Tyriq Withers. He is extremely dreamy in this feature and I cannot wait to see what he does next. 

[Note from Film Probe] I was invited to an early screening of this film but was not paid to write a review. Therefore, these thoughts and opinions and completely my own. 

★★★

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