Don't Marry A Democrat

When my parents called me up to rave about this movie called Anniversary, they forgot to mention that this movie is not, in fact, about marriage.

I got the ominous midnight call on a random Thursday. My mother, on the other end of the line, breathed deeply and whispered, "It's such a good movie. About this couple on their anniversary." ... And that was all the context I got before she demanded I watch it ASAP.

Of course, I did. Although I was not prepared for what I was about to witness.

Nope. Not in the least bit.

But, holy crap, this is a movie to watch.

I'm not going to lie, the initial dialogue is pretty expositional, and it takes like a second to find its flow; however, once the story slides into place, everything implodes in the best possible way.

So, turns out my parents didn't fully lie; the movie does actually have something to do with anniversaries, in that it begins at Ellen's (Diane Lane) and Paul's (Kyle Chandler) 25th anniversary party.

Immediately, we are introduced to Ellen and Paul's four kids, Anna (Madeline Brewer), Cynthia (Zoey Deutch), Josh (Dylan O'Brien), and Birdie (McKenna Grace). We learn that Ellen is a progressive lecturer at a university, and that Paul is a restaurant owner. Their kids are mostly grown, except the youngest, who is still in high school, working to get their lives together; Anna is a famous comedian, Cynthia, an environmental lawyer, Josh is a failed writer, and Birdie is in high school, aspiring to be a scientist.

There is a bit of tension between the siblings; however, the biggest shock of all is that Josh has brought a new girlfriend, Liz (Phoebe Dynevor).

Immediately, it is clear that everyone is wary of Liz, especially Ellen. We quickly learn that Ellen is a lecturer at a university for political science, and that Liz was once her student. The major point of contention is that Ellen, and majority of her family, is very clearly an advocate for democracy, and Liz is very clearly not. In fact, Liz was the author of a book that advocated for a one-party state, titled "The Change."

Thus begins a series of progressively more intense conversations and outrage.

I know this sounds arguably boring, but the movie is far from that. It takes such a simple concept: polarized political ideologies and explores the actual dangers of it in a way that is engaging and tense. I mean, after the initial introductions of each character and their relationship to one another, the conversations got better and better. The best part is that the majority of the movie takes place in Ellen's home, and still nothing ever feels slow or sluggish.

The conversation around universities being "too liberal" is fairly recent and provoked a huge debate as to how educational institutions, which were supposedly nonpartisan, carried an underlying political bias. The conversation led to a wave of people viewing universities as a threat, even going as far as to call out higher education as a form of indoctrination. Now, obviously, these claims were heavily disputed, but the fear propelled another level of cynicism towards education.

That's what this movie is about.

It's about two polarized policies butting heads. It's about extremist ideologies that pose as logical and rational under the guise of education, but are actually super problematic. It's about the literal dangers that can manifest simply through a concept that feels different and fresh against norms (#forthecontroversy), but is so pervasive and dangerous that it can alter the entire balance holding everything together.

For me, the greatest fear came from the fact that Ellen saw the dangers straightaway. Their differences caused issues way before Josh started dating Liz; it began after Liz published her thesis advocating for the same totalitarian policies that she later published in her book. Yet, for someone who was so educated and part of the discourse, nobody believed Ellen. Her status and approach failed her in preventing the dangers that she could already foresee.

The coolest part about this movie is that right-wing rhetoric encroaches slowly upon you as a viewer, too. As Liz becomes more and more integrated into the family, the harder it is to disentangle her ideologies. Loyalties take precedent, emotions overtake rationale; Ellen can't win, not by logic.

In fact, even after verbalizing her fears, outlining them logically and debating Liz, the immediate fear mongering that was used to silence her was arguably the scariest part. I mean, when you watch the movie, notice her reactions. Notice how nobody wants to argue with Ellen because she comes across so combative, even when she's simply refuting Liz's points. Notice the way that Ellen's composure compared to Liv's, and I'm telling you, it will give you chills.

What I think is important about watching Anniversary is that it highlights just how easy it is to target and dismantle education. The sentiment doesn't feel like it is anything new or shocking, but I think that's the point. It's not even really about which political ideology is better or not— I mean, it is, but what's more important is how each reacts. It doesn't matter how knowledgeable one is over the other, or how much one disagrees with another; Anniversary warns us that once the flame is lit, it is hard to contain.

Theoretically, it feels like universities would be the place that could point out and combat these aggressively problematic points, but Anniversary reminds us otherwise. It shows how universities can be the breeding ground for extremist values, that despite being able to point out an issue, sometimes there is really no way to stop it.

I think it's a shame that Anniversary is so neglected, hidden under lengthy lists of other films that have come out this year. I hadn't heard anything about it at all, not until my parents unearthed it for me, and they found that movie by accident, too.

Then, finding that the cast was stacked with names like Diane Lane, Dylan O'Brien, Phoebe Dynevor, McKenna Grace, Zoey Deutch, Kyle Chandler, Daryl McCormack, was shocking. Where was the marketing? The names alone could've reigned in a huge audience!

Come on, O'Brien? He was the craze in the early 2010s, what with Teen Wolf and Maze Runner. And then Phoebe Dynevor with Bridgerton. Like, how is it possible that this movie was so hidden?

It's a tragedy, really, because the plot and performances will hit you. I mean this dystopia will creep into the back of your skull and make you rethink everything.