Anniversary

This is a slight retelling of the rise of Hitler and the Nazis but in modern day America.

A scorned student who is upset by a teacher ends up with a big chip on her shoulder and sets out to write a book all about how to change things and how things will be much better.

Later the student meets her new mother in law (teacher who angered her). Slowly over each anniversary things change within the.new America.

The details of the ideology are not spoken about but the book is very inspiring to all different kinds of people, white/black, straight/gay etc.

There are also people who find the ideology restrictive and repressive.

Those opposing the new regime/ideology are hunted, caught and processed.

Overall the film is well acted, it can be tense and thoughtful and the pacing is good considering most of what occurs is within a single family home.

The focus is very much on one family and not so much the bigger picture which is merely hinted at.

This is a film where the actual politics/ideologies are not important, what is important is the way anyone opposing is shut down/cancelled/arrested/processed and how this affects a single family who are at the heart of this new movement.

This is a film about anti freedoms but also brain washing, manipulation, family dynamics within politics and how damaging the attempt and finding a utopia often becomes dystopia.

Its a solid 7/10 for the acting, message and powerful ending but don't expect a complete masterpiece.

I walked into this on a whim and couldn't be more impressed. This is 2025 in every sense of the word. Thank you director Jan Komosa, Diane Lane, Kyle Chandler, Zoey Deutch, all the talented performers in this film, you all deserve nominations. I write joke reviews sometimes but this is terrifyingly urgent filmmaking, why the medium was invented in the first place. Please give this film an audience, you will not regret it. Thank you.

Gripping tale about a possible 'new' political society aka totalitarian regime with the main focus on a family.

Great performances by Diane Lane, Kyle Chandler and Dylan O'Brien.

Unfortunately Lionsgate wanted to keep this movie as low profile as possible, didn't do any marketing for it to not 'hurt' anybody and therefore this movie with a top notch superb cast is very under the radar and a financial flop. So, a studio produced this movie and a distributor should distribute it, but then it's for the better good to keep this movie quiet.

Ironical, isn't it?

The movie is like a chamber play, more or less takes only place at the house and inside the house of the Turner family, the parents Paul and Ellen Taylor and their children being in the centre of the story that spans five years.

Sharp, intense dialogues, very well acted by Diane Lsne and I hope she gets nominated for an Academy Award, and a dark mood and unease that starts after appr. 15-20 minutes and never let's go.

Good movie. Reminded me on the first 'The Purge' (2013) with Ethan Hawke and Lena Headey that also showed a changed society from a chamber play view.

Recommended.

"Anniversary" is an uncomfortable, unsettling viewing - exactly as it's meant to be. It's the first film to truly confront the state of the U. S. in the post-Trump era, exposing how toxic and divisive politics have become. The story plays like a cautionary tale, one that could easily serve as a prequel to The Handmaid's Tale. What makes it terrifying is how grounded it feels in our current reality.

The film is subtle, poignant, and thought-provoking, choosing to focus on a single family rather than on the events happening around them. This perspective makes the impact far more intimate and intense; you feel the consequences directly through the characters, how they change, and how the events twist their lives. It forces you to wonder how you would react if placed in their situation. Making this a must watch.

The cast is a huge part of the film's success, with eveyone delivering an Oscar-worthy performance - especially the always incredible Diane Lane. And everything else, from the direction to the writing to the cinematography, is absolutely top-notch.

Sometimes a movie sneaks up on you. You go in, the movie begins, and you think it is going to be a normal drama about a family. But as the movie goes on you find out that something is brewing that may soon boil over into a whole other thing. That is my experience seeing Anniversary.

Ellen Taylor (Diane Lane) is a university professor who leans to the left. Her husband Paul (Kyle Chandler) runs a restaurant. After introducing these two central characters, we slowly meet their kids as they arrive to celebrate Ellen and Paul's 25th wedding anniversary. Their youngest daughter Birdie (McKenna Grace) rolls into the yard on skates and heads to her bedroom which looks like a lab. Their daughter Anna (Madeline Brewer) comes looking for Birdie. They walk out into the living room, noticing their brother Josh (Dylan O'Brien) and his new girlfriend Elizabeth Nettles (Phoebe Dynevor). Ellen is skeptical of Liz but remains civil.

Last to arrive is their daughter Cynthia (Zoey Deutch) with her boyfriend Rob Thompson (Daryl McCormack). Surrounded by other friends and family the party begins in the backyard. Happy 25th, Ellen and Paul. Ellen has dreams for Josh, hopes that he will one day publish his sci-fi novel. When she finds out that Liz is also an author, she begins to wonder whether Josh is being used by her. The plot thickens when Liz publishes a book that becomes a best-seller.

The movie features the Taylor family as a microcosm of society. Things change in the country and subsequently alter the dynamics of the family. As that political and cultural shift becomes more pronounced, so does the tension among the Taylors. You know those tense family gatherings some of us might be anticipating for the upcoming holidays? Well, this is what happens with the Taylor clan.

How much you like this film will likely depend upon how you perceive our current cultural milieu in America. If you look around or watch the news and think everything is hunky dory, you will see this film differently than if you live under a cloud of concern regarding the direction the country is headed. The movie builds to a climax with plenty of shock, making this film leap from family drama to thriller. Full disclosure, I am living in that cloud of concern, but I will restrain myself and give this one 3.5 stars.