Anemone is a 2025 feature film written and directed by Ronan Day-Lewis, co-written with his father Daniel Day-Lewis, and inspired by the lingering scars of the Troubles in Northern Ireland. It is significant both as a deeply personal exploration of generational trauma and as a landmark collaboration between one of cinema’s greatest actors and his son, marking Ronan’s debut as a filmmaker.
The film Anemone stands as one of the most intriguing cinematic releases of 2025, not only because of its subject matter but also because of the unique collaboration behind it.
Written and directed by Ronan Day-Lewis, with co-writing contributions from his father, the legendary actor Daniel Day-Lewis, the film is a layered drama that delves into the psychological and emotional aftermath of the Troubles in Northern Ireland. The narrative centers on a fractured family, torn apart by the violence and political upheaval of the 1970s, and explores how those wounds reverberate decades later. Starring Daniel Day-Lewis himself alongside Sean Bean and Samantha Morton, the film is both intimate and epic, weaving together personal grief with historical trauma.
The inspiration for Anemone came from Ronan Day-Lewis’s fascination with the way history embeds itself into family life.
In interviews, he has explained that the film grew out of conversations with his father, who began to inhabit the characters during the writing process, particularly the role of Ray, a man haunted by his past. Daniel Day-Lewis’s method acting style, infamous for its intensity, became part of the creative process even before cameras rolled, as he spoke in character during script development. This collaboration gave Ronan a unique shorthand with his father on set, allowing them to explore the story’s emotional depths with unusual precision. The film’s surreal elements—such as the ghostly figure of Nessa, a spectral presence that appears to one of the brothers—were inspired by Ronan’s desire to capture the way memory and trauma manifest in haunting, almost supernatural ways.
At its core, Anemone is about estrangement and reconciliation.
The plot follows two brothers whose reunion dredges up buried resentment and unresolved grief. The appearance of ghostly creatures, explained by Ronan as projections of memory and longing, underscores the surreal yet deeply human nature of trauma. These elements elevate the film beyond a straightforward historical drama, situating it in a liminal space between realism and myth. The title itself, Anemone, evokes both fragility and resilience—the flower that bends with the wind yet survives, much like the families who endured the Troubles.
The significance of Anemone lies in several dimensions.
First, it represents Ronan Day-Lewis’s emergence as a filmmaker, stepping out from the shadow of his father’s towering legacy. To direct Daniel Day-Lewis, widely considered one of the greatest actors of all time, is itself a remarkable feat. The film thus becomes a dialogue not only between characters but between generations of storytellers. Second, it contributes to the ongoing cinematic exploration of the Troubles, joining films like In the Name of the Father and ’71 in grappling with the human cost of political violence. Yet unlike those works, Anemone is more surreal, more inward-looking, emphasizing the psychological scars rather than the external conflict.
Moreover, the film resonates in contemporary contexts. Released in 2025, Anemone arrives at a time when questions of identity, memory, and reconciliation remain pressing in Ireland and beyond. Its depiction of estranged brothers struggling to reconnect mirrors broader societal efforts to bridge divides left by history. The ghostly visitation of Nessa, interpreted as a projection of longing and unresolved communication, symbolises the way past generations continue to speak to the present. In this sense, the film is not only about the Troubles but about the universal human struggle to confront painful legacies.
The performances add to its significance.
Daniel Day-Lewis, who had previously retired from acting after Phantom Thread in 2017, returned for this project, making Anemone a rare and possibly final screen appearance. His portrayal of Ray is marked by the intensity and authenticity that have defined his career, while Sean Bean and Samantha Morton bring gravitas and emotional nuance to their roles. Together, the cast embodies the film’s themes of resilience, grief, and reconciliation, grounding its surreal elements in lived human experience.
Anemone is significant not only as a film but as a cultural event. It represents the passing of the torch from one generation of artists to another, while simultaneously offering a profound meditation on trauma, memory, and reconciliation. Written and directed by Ronan Day-Lewis, co-written with Daniel Day-Lewis, and inspired by the Troubles, it is a film that bends the boundaries of realism to capture the haunting persistence of history. Its significance lies in its artistry, its emotional depth, and its ability to speak to both personal and collective wounds. For Ronan Day-Lewis, it is a remarkable debut; for Daniel Day-Lewis, it is a poignant return; and for audiences, it is a reminder that the past is never truly past, but continues to shape the present in ways both visible and spectral.
You can watch Anemone (2025) on Peacock, as well as rent or buy it digitally on platforms like Apple TV, Google Play, and Movies Anywhere.
