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What happens when a bestselling psychological thriller makes the leap from page to screen, but leaves some of its most compelling details behind? On this episode of the OD’ing on Movies Podcast, Dr. Jacobi Cleaver and Dr. Jacob Wilson welcome special guest Dr. Eric Harris, an experienced optometrist, educator, and avid reader who recently joined CooperVision as Senior Advisor for Professional Education and Development. Together, they unpack Verity, the film adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s novel, exploring its shocking twists, complex characters, and the differences between the book and movie. Along the way, they uncover unexpected connections to clinical optometry, raising questions about perception, diagnostic uncertainty, and how easily appearances can be misleading.
Topics Covered :
A Psychological Thriller Built on Uncertainty
At the center of Verity is Lowen, a struggling writer portrayed by Dakota Johnson, who is hired to complete a successful author’s unfinished book series. Her assignment takes her into the secluded home of Verity Crawford, played by Anne Hathaway, and Verity’s husband, Jeremy, portrayed by Josh Hartnett.
What initially appears to be a professional opportunity quickly becomes unsettling. Verity is believed to be severely incapacitated following an accident, while Lowen discovers a hidden manuscript containing disturbing accounts of the family’s past.
For Wilson, who entered the theater without reading the novel, the film’s atmosphere and suspense were effective. He particularly appreciated the uncertainty surrounding Verity’s condition and the increasingly disturbing events inside the house.
Cleaver and Harris, however, approached the film with a different perspective. Having experienced the novel, both felt the adaptation sacrificed important psychological details that gave the original story its power.
What the Movie Left Behind
Harris, an avid audiobook listener who considers Verity one of his favorite recent reads, believed the film significantly reduced the complexity of its central characters.
In the novel, Verity’s emotional dependence on Jeremy receives considerably more attention. Harris explained that her sense of identity and emotional well-being are deeply connected to how her husband perceives her.
Cleaver emphasized another important omission: the novel portrays a family with three children rather than the two represented in the film. It also explores Lowen’s history of sleepwalking, a detail he believed could have strengthened the movie’s uncertainty and suspense.
The differences extend to Jeremy. According to Cleaver, the novel presents a more troubling version of the character, including details suggesting he deliberately sought out Lowen and had previously attempted to kill Verity.
For Harris, these omissions reveal a larger challenge in literary adaptations. A complex psychological thriller may struggle to preserve its character development within a film’s limited runtime.
He suggested that a four-part series could have provided more opportunities to explore the shifting relationships, motivations, and moral ambiguity that distinguish the book.
The Ending That Changes Everything
After Lowen discovers Verity’s manuscript, its disturbing contents appear to confirm that Verity deliberately caused her daughter’s death. Yet a letter discovered later offers an entirely different explanation: the manuscript was supposedly a fictional writing exercise, and Verity was innocent.
The competing accounts leave readers and viewers with a difficult question. Is Verity a calculating villain, or has she been tragically misunderstood?
Cleaver framed the debate as a choice between believing the manuscript or the letter.
Harris favored the manuscript, arguing that its extensive psychological detail made the last-minute explanation difficult to accept. Wilson agreed, questioning the plausibility of Verity’s actions if the letter were truthful.
Still, the discussion revealed how effectively the original story challenges audiences to reconsider what they believe about its characters.
For Cleaver, the film’s treatment of the ending was particularly frustrating. Without the novel’s additional context, he felt certain developments were less convincing, especially the circumstances surrounding Verity’s apparent incapacitation and death.
An Unexpected Connection to Clinical Practice
Verity’s apparent inability to move or communicate, despite the absence of an obvious structural explanation, prompted Wilson to discuss functional or non-organic vision loss.
Cleaver recalled encountering patients whose visual complaints remained unexplained after extensive testing. Harris added a residency experience involving retrobulbar optic neuritis, emphasizing the importance of recognizing conditions that may not present with immediately visible abnormalities.
Their clinical takeaway was clear: practitioners should avoid committing prematurely to a diagnosis without sufficient evidence.
Harris stressed the importance of appropriate imaging, careful documentation, and acknowledging diagnostic uncertainty. Cleaver reinforced that approach, noting that premature conclusions can undermine patient trust when additional testing reveals a different explanation.
Much like Verity itself, the clinical discussion underscored the importance of looking beyond initial appearances.
