Anemone (2025)
Directed by: Ronan Day-Lewis
Premise: A man (Sean Bean) seeks out his brother (Daniel Day-Lewis) who lives a reclusive life in the woods of northern England.
What Works: The best part of Anemone is the performances. Sean Bean and Daniel Day-Lewis are cast to their strengths, playing the kind of haggard masculine characters that are familiar to their filmographies. A lot of Anemone consists of these two men sitting around and talking and it’s to Bean and Day-Lewis’ credit that Anemone is engaging at all. The cast also includes Samantha Morton as the estranged wife of Day-Lewis’ character and Morton makes the most of her handful of scenes. The technical aspects of Anemone are very impressive. It is beautifully shot with a foreboding tone and there are a few surreal images. The music by Bobby Krlic is also effective.
What Doesn’t: Anemone is paced very slowly and it feels all of its 125 minutes because there is no drama or substance. Anemone has some sharp dialogue but the story does not give anyone that much to do. Quite a bit of the film is just the two brothers sitting around and talking. The teenage son of Day-Lewis’s character is in trouble and Bean’s character has traveled to see his brother in the hopes of convincing him to reenter the son’s life. There is a vague tension between the brothers and Day-Lewis’s character is haunted by things he’s done but his regrets are not worked out and the brotherly and the internal conflict are never resolved. The film stays on the surface of everything. The actors do what they can to give it gravitas and the impression of depth but there’s just nothing here. The story alternates between the woods of northern England and the action in the city. The city scenes don’t accomplish anything and the intercutting interrupts the sense of isolation in the woods. The son’s troubles are vague and there is no sense of urgency. Day-Lewis’ character has been gone for many years and it is unclear why he needs to come back now. There’s no point to all of this and that becomes especially evident in the ending. The conclusion of Anemone doesn’t resolve anything. The family reunion ought to be the middle of this film, not the end, and Anemone feels incomplete.
Disc extras: None.
Bottom Line: Anemone is the feature film directorial debut of Ronan Day-Lewis and it shows some promise in its technical faculties. Anemone looks great but there is nothing here beneath the style and technique.
Episode: #1076 (November 30, 2025)