Stream It Or Skip It: ‘The Lost Husband’ On Netflix, A Nicholas Sparks-Esque Drama That Might Surprise You

Sappy, overdone romances in the vein of Nicholas Sparks or Lifetime Originals have now taken over their own corner on Netflix, and at first glance, The Lost Husband seems to be just another addition to the pile. Grieving widow moves to a country town and finds love again? It feels like we’ve heard this before. But with a cast this promising, can it overcome expectations and break the tired, artificial mold? The answer might surprise you. 

THE LOST HUSBAND: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

The Gist: Leslie Bibb, Josh Duhamel, and Nora Dunn star in The Lost Husband, a romantic drama based on the novel by Katherine Carter. Having lost her husband 6 months prior and fed up with living with her toxic, abusive mother Marsha (Sharon Lawrence), Libby (Bibb) takes her two children Abby and Tank and leaves the big city to stay with her Aunt Jean (Dunn). Jean lives a simple life on a goat farm, and immediately puts Libby to work, despite her lack of experience (and reluctance to get her hands dirty). Libby’s teacher is the grizzly, gruff James O’Connor (Duhamel), who has some of his own demons to face. The two immediately have a connection – if a slightly hostile one – and find themselves warming up to one another as the months go by. On the surface, The Lost Husband seems like the formulaic fairytale romantic drama we’re used to seeing these days. But there are layers here, and more to explore than the central romance. Over time, Libby confronts her grief and learns the ropes at the farm, her kids start to find joy and confidence again, James starts to open his heart, and Jean realizes that keeping secrets may not be the best idea.

What Movies Will It Remind You Of?: The Lost Husband feels like an elevated Lifetime Original romance, or something on par with the lesser Nicholas Sparks flicks we’ve seen shuffled out over the last few years. Think The Lucky One, Safe Haven, The Best of Me, etc.

Performance Worth Watching: The entire cast pulls off quite a surprise by taking what could easily have been eye-roll-inducing babble and making it feel real, but Dunn is (unsurprisingly) the MVP here. She brings a lived-in, comforting quality to Jean without letting the more hackneyed scenes get the best of her. She says so much by saying so little, allowing her expressions to land some of the film’s more emotionally resonant moments. There’s a reason she’s such an on-screen staple.

Memorable Dialogue: As cheesy as much of the dialogue is, The Last Husband actually does a pretty good job at driving even its syrupy exchanges home. Jean delivers a particularly moving speech to Libby when she asks her about grief: “This kind of pain and loss, it cracks you open. But we are made of magic and resilience, Libby. Losing someone you love – that scar will feel ugly forever. But it will heal.” Is it overly sentimental? Sure. But it feels real. One more honorable mention? Duhamel’s genuinely funny delivery of “roosters can’t tell time”.

Single Best Shot: There aren’t a ton of shots to write home about, but The Last Husband certainly takes advantage of its beautiful rural setting. This sunny moment is just one example.

Sex and Skin: There are a handful of quality smooches here, but most of The Lost Husband‘s action is pretty PG.

Our Take: As soon as I read the title The Lost Husband, I’ll admit I grimaced. I prepared for the worst. Soapy performances, terrible dialogue, a world too cookie-cutter perfect to resemble our own. Color me surprised to find that The Lost Husband – terrible and confusing title aside – actually manages to avoid most of these tropes. This isn’t to say it’s in the same league as The Notebook or that everyone should be rushing to see it, but it certainly is a step above the kind of overdramatic drivel we’re used to seeing these days. Bibb and Duhamel have genuine chemistry, and Bibb in particular feels like a real person. Her grief is palpable, and her emotional journey doesn’t feel at all contrived. She is that kind-hearted mother and grieving widow, and you never doubt that she’s fighting battles beneath the front she might put on. Romantic dramas like these rarely give us a leading lady that could be someone we know, but The Last Husband does – and then some.

At almost 2 hours, The Last Husband is entirely too long, and yes, it is not without its overly sentimental moments, cornball score, and occasional clichés (Libby’s mother Marsha is essentially a caricature of the toxic matriarch that tends to exist in this genre). But I’ll be the first to admit that I found myself swept up in several scenes and in Libby’s journey, not really wondering how things would turn out – there’s never any question of that – but invested in her experience. Tired family secrets storyline aside, Jean is also one of the film’s greatest assets, and she feels much more fleshed out than this kind of role usually is. I can’t remember the last time I watched one of these movies and felt like any of the characters felt remotely authentic. The Lost Husband changes that.

Director/screenwriter Vicky Wight mostly avoids the exhausting banalities we’re accustomed to with this kind of flick and instead gives us a genuinely resonant glimpse of grief. For most of its runtime, The Lost Husband isn’t exceedingly saccharine or cloying; it often embraces subtlety in a way these stories never do, and it breathes life into a painfully familiar premise. Hell, it’s even occasionally charming. The Lost Husband – even with a stupid title that honestly may harm the film more than it helps it – isn’t going to change the game, but for genre-lovers, it is more than worth your time.

Our Call: Stream it. If you’re usually a sucker for Nicholas Sparks or the aforementioned cheesy romances that plague our televisions and streaming platforms these days, The Lost Husband is a welcome, surprisingly moving addition to the collection. Despite its indulgent length, its strong performances and gentle nature may be enough to win your heart.

Jade Budowski is a freelance writer with a knack for ruining punchlines and harboring dad-aged celebrity crushes. Follow her on Twitter: @jadebudowski.

Stream The Lost Husband on Netflix