PLOT: In Northern England, a man heads out on a journey into the woods to reconnect with the estranged hermit brother with whom he shared a complicated past that was altered by life-changing events decades ago.
REVIEW: When Daniel Day-Lewis retired in 2017, it was a bit unbelievable given how impressive he always is in every performance. Felt like we were missing out on so many potential great roles. I kept waiting for him to go back on his word and come out for some big, grand spectacle film. So thank god for his son Ronan Day-Lewis, who was able to get his father back into the acting game. But sadly, it merely amounts to a good performance in a directionless bore.
The story follows Sean Bean‘s Jem as he heads out into the woods to find his hermit brother, Ray (Daniel Day-Lewis). They have an extremely complicated history to say the least, and the film is mostly about Jem trying to convince Ray to come back and help his estranged son. Day-Lewis is fantastic in his return film, commanding the scene with every syllable he utters. He has multiple monologues that he absolutely owns and is as captivating as ever. Bean is also great as a man who is desperate to find out why his brother left society.
I feel like it’s an absolute shame that I always have to refer to Samantha Morton as an underrated actress. She’s always so damn good and here is no different, providing so much with so little dialogue. Samuel Bottomley‘s Brian didn’t really work for me, but clearly had tough shoes to fill given the others that inhabit the movie. He just feels a bit lost and his scenes are easily the most uninteresting.
It’s hard to not just see Anemone as an Oscar bait-style movie. It’s all performance and not really much else. It doesn’t help that it moves at a snail’s pace. That wouldn’t be a big issue, except there’s really not much payoff overall. I don’t mind a movie that has gorgeous visuals and takes its time, but this feels like it’s constantly trying to drag the viewer through the dirt. Take away the strong performances, and there’s not much else there. There’s a moment that feels so out of left field and so abstract, I couldn’t believe it was featured in the movie I was watching, which had been so grounded to that point.
The sound design and score of Anemone are what really impress. The score by Bobby Krlic is very guitar-heavy and almost has an Explosions in the Sky vibe to it. Helps to liven up some of the more mundane scenes. We need more electric guitars in movies. Despite the film not really working for me overall, I was impressed with elements of Ronan Day-Lewis’ work behind the camera. It’s shocking that this is his first feature film, as it deals with such dark and heavy themes with ease. But he doesn’t have quite the command of the material he needs, and it’s likely to cure insomnia for some.
Overall, it’s disappointing that this is the movie that Day-Lewis came back for, as it’s not as solid as it should be. It’s wrought with symbolism, but that often comes at the cost of coherence. Majestic in some moments and frustrating in others, Anemone doesn’t fully achieve what it’s going for. But as a depressing look at a man who can hardly live with himself and his actions, it’s an interesting enough time at the movies. Like most DDL movies, it’s worth it to see his performance alone.
Anemone is now playing In Theaters Everywhere.
