‘Anemone’ Review: Daniel Day-Lewis is a Force of Nature in this Modern, Familial Folktale [B] NYFF
When Daniel Day-Lewis shared that he was taking a break from acting after completing Phantom Thread, many wondered what he would do next. Was he really abandoning the silver screen, or did he just need the right project to come along to inspire him again? When it was announced that he would be returning after an eight-year hiatus to star in and serve as a co-writer on his son Ronan Day-Lewis’ feature directorial debut, Anemone, that decision felt purposeful and personal. It’s a story about the pliability of the complex bonds between brothers and the effect that those relationships can have on fathers and sons, so the news that this father-son pair would be tackling that together was incredibly intriguing. And while the film certainly reminds audiences of our greatest living actor’s brilliance, its stunning visual style and creative directorial flourishes immediately establish Ronan Day-Lewis as an exciting new filmmaker to watch.
Anemone begins with an artistic choice often found in folktales and fairy tales, as Day-Lewis’ camera hovers over a series of eerie, colored-pencil drawings that detail the story to follow. It’s a clever way to begin the film, as the introduction of these narrative drawings not only illustrates the pain and conflict stemming from The Troubles in Northern Ireland, but also a violent world that predates and influences the characters’ actions in the present. Even without the context for these images, they represent the complicated, decades-long past of the two brothers at the center of the film. That folktale imagery continues as Jem (Sean Bean) tells his wife, Nessa (Samantha Morton), and son, Brian (Samuel Bottomley), that he’ll be leaving for a few days and venturing out on a journey into the unknown. It’s clear that they’re worried about his departure, but Jem knows that with a brewing difficulty at home with Brian, the time has come to reunite with his estranged brother, Ray (Daniel Day-Lewis). After traveling deep into the wilderness and tracking down a series of coordinates, he locates Ray in his remote cabin, and the two share a silent (and somewhat hostile) family reunion.
As the two brothers spend more time together in the close quarters of Ray’s cabin, Day-Lewis establishes just how different these two men are and how their choices have led to completely opposed lifestyles. Yes, Jem’s choice to live with his family in the suburbs is the most obvious point of difference, but what they turn to for retribution is even more striking than their lifestyles. Jem finds solace through prayer and his devout faith, often turning to God at key points within the story. Meanwhile, Ray rejects this outright and appears to be serving his penance by withdrawing from any semblance of community in favor of solitude, seeking absolution through nature. It’s here that the script slowly unveils the many fractures in the brotherly bond that led to a twenty-year estrangement. When Jem delivers a letter that Nessa has written to Ray that he refuses to read, it’s clear that she has a core role in the division between the two and that she’s still trying to make peace with Ray’s decision to leave their world behind. Her specific place within the brothers’ past is best left unspoiled, yet it’s evident from the film’s earliest moments that she’s wary of what may happen if Jem tries to bring Ray back into the fold.
Anemone is at its strongest and sharpest when it spends time with Jem and Ray, revealing and exploring the strife between the two and just how far apart they’ve grown. When the film pivots from the conversations between Jem and Ray back to Brian and Nessa, it loses some of its energy and creative verve. At home, Brian has become increasingly angry and violent, noting that he wouldn’t be the only killer in the family if he ended up crossing that line. He’s also become more interested in the military, especially with the mystery surrounding Ray’s involvement as a young soldier many years ago. While the scenes are necessary for exploring the impact of the gap left by Ray’s departure and Brian’s attempt to understand this invisible man, they slow down the film’s rhythm and feel far more standard and out of place opposite Day-Lewis’ more audacious creative vision. Even though Morton and Bottomley play off of each other well, some of these scenes feel a bit stagey and forced, as if they’re included simply to incorporate exposition. It’s impossible not to yearn to return to the forest with Day-Lewis and Bean.
As time passes during Jem’s stay with Ray, Day-Lewis’ magnetic, towering performance begins to take shape. Throughout their time together in Ray’s cabin or out amidst the lush forest surrounding them, Day-Lewis conjures up a character that is unique and fully realized. What makes Ray an exciting new entry in Day-Lewis’ filmography is that the role allows him to access the devilishness of Daniel Plainview, the stubbornness of Reynolds Woodcock, and the repressed pain of Newland Archer, while still feeling like an entirely new creation. At first, Day-Lewis acts as if he’s giving a physical performance in a silent film, not saying anything to Jem but communicating through his unique gait and posture just how comfortable Ray has become in his environment. When Ray eventually does speak to Jem beyond the early one-word answers, the Day-Lewis duo gifts the audience with a series of monologues that escalate in tension. While the writing can sometimes feel a bit over-written and theatrical, watching Day-Lewis deliver these words and shape our understanding of Ray’s past trauma is a gift to witness. Through these monologues, Day-Lewis creates a character who begins with a story that highlights his dry, crude sense of humor, only to slowly chip away at that exterior over time, revealing a deeply haunted man who has never been able to come to terms with his past actions in the military. For an actor as well-known and celebrated as Day-Lewis, it’s remarkable that each performance feels like something we’ve never seen before, and Ray in Anemone instantly joins the pantheon of the actor’s incredible performances.
While Anemone can’t help but showcase the powerhouse performance at the center of it, Ronan Day-Lewis’ bold visual style provides far more than just a beautiful backdrop for his father’s work. Instead, his direction helps enrich the character, adding shades of English and Irish folklore and Biblical imagery to illuminate the brotherly conflict and the generational wounds. Alongside cinematographer Ben Fordesman (Saint Maud) and production designer Chris Oddy (The Zone of Interest), Day-Lewis crafts a rich world that feels both otherworldly and hyperreal. That preternatural quality is also brought to life by Bobby Krlic, aka The Haxan Cloak’s layered, ethereal score. Ray’s spare and simple cabin, along with the deep greens of nature, provide the perfect contrast to Day-Lewis’ blue and silver fantastical imagery (a large, mythical fish comes to mind). An avid painter outside of filmmaking, Day-Lewis and his creative team incorporate the color blue in brilliant ways, rich and cool in nature with Ray and Jem, yet drab and dreary at home with Nessa and Brian. With the film’s unique visual palette, it’s clear that Day-Lewis is reflecting on the intersection between past and present, and the ordinary and extraordinary.
Early in the film, Jem and Ray come across a patch of white flowers, and Jem asks, “Are they the flowers our dad used to grow? Anemones?” It’s here that Day-Lewis introduces the film’s namesake, a bright flower found in nature, and its connection to the men’s father. As a film, Anemone unspools the complexities of the relationships between brothers as each man confronts the ghosts of his past. But perhaps just as importantly, it illustrates the ties between fathers and sons and how their collective history can bind them. For Ronan and Daniel Day-Lewis, the cinematic history that connects them, just became even richer.
Grade: B
Focus Features will release Anemone only in theaters on October 3.
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