It's is an adaptation that may still vaguely work for big fans of the book who read it and want to specifically see some of their favorite lines and moments from the novel on screen – but mostly Redeeming Love completely falls apart as a movie. Book adaptations work the best when there’s a distinct vision being created that can allow for a story to live in live-action in a different way than it breathed on the page – but that is not something that is ultimately accomplished here. Overall, the problem with Redeeming Love seems to be how poorly it was adapted from book to screen.

It’s another adaptation that’s too overwhelmed with its source material to flourish. It's indicative of a larger issue in the film, as it feels incredibly forgettable because while there is a lot being put forward in the story as far as narrative elements and details, it's not put together in a way that makes the audience remotely care or feel engaged with the story or principal players. Each talented actor had a potentially interesting arc to work with, but the actual execution of the film gives the audience very little to chew on and they end up coming out as flat, one-dimensional characters. The antagonists in Redeeming Love include Eric Dane’s Duke and Famke Janssen’s Duchess. The way in which this couple’s story unfolds feels incredibly stiff, and it operates in a way that both takes away the power from the female protagonist throughout the film, and also lacks enough depth to allow audiences to buy into why Michael is the one at the center of the narrative and deserves our (and her) attention. This is until she meets Michael Hosea, who falls in love with her at first sight and vows to cherish her for the woman she is and to marry her in a “taking her away from all this”-type gesture. Redeeming Love introduces us to Angel, a woman who was sold into prostitution as a child, and as she has grown into adulthood she has gotten used to be looked at as a commodity. Redeeming Love is not only incredibly boring, it’s void of allure.

This is not to say that the director cannot take on a sweeping romance, but Redeeming Love is not anywhere close to one. Caruso – a surprising voice behind the material given his thriller-heavy filmography including films such as Disturbia, Taking Lives and Eagle Eye. The screenplay was co-written by Francine Rivers and D.J. Redeeming Love is loosely inspired by The Bible’s Book of Hosea, the narrative transplanted to take place in the 1850s amid the California Gold Rush.

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