The Anniversary (I) (2014) User Reviews

A charming and delightful indie gem

[vdetour-216-431582 · 10/10 · 18 January 2015]

The Anniversary is everything we hope for in an indie film: authentic humanity, a brilliant script with highly original characters, great music and a totally original story of heartbreak and longing.

And it has none of the things we fear in an indie film: the sound is exceptionally good for example. And the characters are quirky without stretching for the quirk.

It's so refreshing when a film has none of the clichés of Hollywood, but also avoids the clichés of independent films: it's simply a deeply human tale of love and loss and hope. The script is brilliant and fresh and real, the actors strong, and The Anniversary also has the most remarkable ending.

I'm going to have to see The Anniversary again, it's that good. What a fine gem of a film.

Easy to miss but beautiful film

[blumdeluxe · 8/10 · 1 April 2017]

"The Anniversary" is one of those movies that fly nearly completely below the radar of a wider audience. That is of course not a big surprise, it doesn't come with a lot of budget or famous actors or a big political relevance but it is a sad thing because it's actually pretty good.

The plot evolves around a woman whose husband disappeared one day without saying a word, and how she gathers common friends and family to nonetheless celebrate their anniversary. What I like so much about this particular film is that it feels really close to what could happen in real life. If you let go the main plot, something that has to be by far the weirdest invitation anyone of the guests ever got, especially in the dialogues and the reveal of smaller issues the movie gets very realistic and thus comprehensibly. It's not all big politics, sometimes you disagree, you fight, but still get along somehow.

So if you ask me if this is an important movie: No it isn't. You won't be a new person after watching it, you don't gather deeper insight on any real issue or controversy. But it's a beautiful piece of art and one that should be more widely appreciated, for it portrays life and loss in a way that many movies fail to.