‘Anywhere’ Review
Stars: Hayley McFarland, Joshua Burge, Sean Gunn | Written and Directed by Adam Seidel
In this drama thriller, we see a man discover that his brother is having an affair with his wife, and they plan on running away together (it somehow gets worse for him as the movie continues). He obviously takes the news badly, and his reaction changes his life forever.
First-time director Adam Seidel makes an impressive debut with Anywhere, and perhaps his best and most impressive decision is casting his three lead actors. Those actors are Hayley McFarland (The Conjuring, Lie To Me) as Syd, Joshua Burge (The Revenant) as John and Sean Gunn (Guardians of the Galaxy) as Wade.
McFarland and Burge have a lot of screen time together and they show plenty of good chemistry. You really feel the struggles of their relationship and when they make bad decisions (and both characters make plenty of them), you still understand why they make them. There’s a strange love between them that I’m sure plenty of people will relate to. They both get to show a good range in the roles, too because the characters have several layers and we see lots of them. Both actors seem to have had little glimpses of much bigger films and shows and I’m sure they’ll both get many more opportunities.
Although I know Gunn has plenty of experience, I haven’t watched him in a whole lot outside of the Guardians of the Galaxy movies, so it was good to see him in a much different role. Here he plays a slimy, horrible man who ends up in a lot of pain!
And that scene in which he receives the pain is surprisingly brutal. We don’t get to see the actual incident as it’s off-camera, but we do see the reactions to it and a lot of blood. There are other moments of violence, but this one seems so much harsher and the two actors involved in it are excellent.
At the beginning of the movie, we see a fight between the two brothers, which does seem to be a theme in these lower-budget films, that doesn’t look great. It’s only short and I think the director realises because we get a lot of extreme close-ups as if to cover it up. I do wish these low-budget thrillers would put a little more effort into fight scenes, because it completely takes me out of the movie when the punches being thrown look so unrealistic. Fortunately, this is a short moment to complain about.
Thankfully, there’s a good story here, with good characters and a solid script. Each twist and turn isn’t there for shock value and is logical. Moving the story along nicely. I haven’t mentioned the rest of the cast, but each and every one is enjoyable and has their roles down great. You really believe and get sucked into this world that is created.
Anywhere feels gritty and dirty, just like that world it is set in. Adam Seidel (who also wrote the movie) has made a really solid debut, and I’ll be sure to check out his next movie (Williston – which has another great-looking cast). Hopefully, Anywhere gets the views and praise it deserves.
