Daniel Day-Lewis emerges from retirement with ANEMONE, an Irish drama directed by his son Ronan that stands as one of the most quietly devastating films of the year. After walking away from acting in 2017, Day-Lewis returns with a performance so searingly intimate that it has immediately thrust him back into awards consideration, reminding audiences why his absence left such a void in cinema. This is not a comeback built on spectacle or noise, but on the kind of raw, unadorned humanity that only an actor of his caliber can summon.
ANEMONE unfolds as a meditation on isolation and the human cost of self-imposed exile. The film centers on Ray, a man who has spent years living alone on the fringes of society, and the small constellation of people whose lives orbit his absence. There’s Jem, whose curiosity about this reclusive figure drives much of the film’s gentle forward momentum, and Nessa, Ray’s former partner, who carries her heartbreak with a somber acceptance that never quite extinguishes hope. Then there’s Brian, their son, a young man consumed by rage at a father who chose to disappear, yet who still finds himself throwing punches to defend Ray’s name. The film lives in these contradictions, in the space between abandonment and loyalty, between judgment and grace.
What makes ANEMONE so achingly effective is how it understands that human connection isn’t just meaningful but necessary for survival itself. Brian’s fury masks a desperate need for the father who left him, and his volatile grief finds its only softening in the presence of Hattie, a friend whose quiet empathy breaks through his armor in one of the film’s most genuinely moving moments. Nessa, despite her pain, surrounds herself with others when catastrophe strikes in the form of a devastating hailstorm, finding strength in community even as she mourns what was lost. Jem approaches Ray with a faith that remains unshaken by the older man’s profanity and bitterness, refusing to surrender hope for someone most would have written off entirely.
At the film’s emotional core is Ray’s painful journey back to recognizing his own humanity. He committed an act so terrible that it drove him to the margins, an act the film reveals with devastating precision as it builds toward its climax. But ANEMONE understands that guilt itself is proof of humanity, that the very fact Ray is haunted by memory means he hasn’t abandoned his soul, only tried desperately to outrun it. This realization, when it finally arrives, is what propels him toward the meeting with Brian that the entire film has been moving toward. The ending is neither loud nor melodramatic, but it carries the weight of years of silence finally breaking. Day-Lewis plays these moments with such delicate restraint that you can feel the accumulated grief and longing in every glance, every hesitation. ANEMONE builds its power through imagery and theme rather than explanation, trusting its audience to feel what its characters cannot always articulate, and in doing so, it creates something genuinely heartwrenching.
Gothic drama LIES WE TELL is now on Netflix.
With powerful performances by Agnes O`Casey and David Wilmot, the Irish drama takes Sheridan Le Fanu`s classic novel UNCLE SILAS and transforms it into something urgent and vital for our moment.
More at irishfilmtv.com.
When Colin Farrell and Jessie Buckley finally sat down together, they were strangers—but within moments, the conversation became profound.
Both Irish actors are carrying the weight of devastating roles this year: Farrell as a gambling addict spiraling in Macau in BALLAD OF A SMALL PLAYER, Buckley as Agnes Shakespeare grieving her son in HAMNET.
Watch now at irishfilmtv.com.
From FAIR CITY to KNIVES OUT! Daryl McCormack shines in the new #netflix film WAKE UP DEAD MAN.
McCormack just wrapped Netflix`s PRIDE AND PREJUDICE opposite Jack Lowden, Emma Corrin, and Olivia Colman. Talk about range: trading viral grift for Jane Austen elegance. Same actor, different century, wildly different moral compass.
More Daryl at irishfilmtv.com.
Eve Hewson brings ghosts to life in Noah Baumbach`s JAY KELLY.
From her breakout in THIS MUST BE THE PLACE to BAD SISTERS and beyond, she`s now haunting George Clooney as Daphne—a face from the past that forces a movie star to confront who he became while chasing fame.
More Eve at irishfilmtv.com.
When the past catches up with you in Amsterdam 🌊
Ciarán Hinds and Lesley Manville star in MIDWINTER BREAK—a retired couple`s winter getaway becomes a reckoning with memories they`ve tried to outrun for decades, in theatres Feb 20.
New trailer at irishfilmtv.com.
James Nesbitt is back in Harlan Coben`s twisted universe. 🔍
RUN AWAY drops January 1st on #Netflix — and this one`s personal.
When Simon (Nesbitt) finally finds his missing daughter strung out in a city park, it`s supposed to be a second chance. Instead, it`s the beginning of a nightmare.
New trailer at irishfilmtv.com.
Are you loving STEVE on #Netflix?
Legendary war photographer Sir Don McCullin spent days on set capturing behind-the-scenes magic from this raw Netflix drama starring Cillian Murphy about a head teacher fighting to save his reform school while battling his own demons.
More at irishfilmtv.com.
🏆 RIVALS just scooped the International Emmy for Best Drama Series!
The Disney+ hit starring Irish talents Aidan Turner and Victoria Smurfit brought home the gold for this deliciously scandalous 1980s romp through the world of wealthy media types.
More at irishfilmtv.com.
From THE COMMITMENTS to THE TUDORS to KIN, @mariadoylekennedy has built a career that defies categories.
In a brand new interview with The Irish Examiner, Maria opens up about the artists and art that shaped her creative journey—from her Dublin roots to international screens and stages.
Watch now at irishfilmtv.com.
🎭 From Shakespeare to a Beatle: Paul Mescal is doing the impossible!
Oscar-nominated Irish actor Paul Mescal is taking on TWO iconic roles that prove he`s one of the most fearless actors working today.
Watch Paul`s latest interview at irishfilmtv.com.
Kerry Condon`s brief but powerful performance in TRAIN DREAMS is pitch perfect.
She inhabits her character with quiet competence, moving through a male-dominated world with both caution and grace.
Watch now on @netflix!
🎬 HAMNET stars to receive Vanguard Award at the Palm Springs International Film Awards!
A stunning meditation on love`s fragility and art`s power to transform suffering into transcendence. This is Irish talent at its absolute finest on the world stage.
More at irishfilmtv.com.
Netflix just quietly dropped a crime thriller you`ve been sleeping on, and Brendan Gleeson`s performance alone makes it mandatory viewing.
MR MERCEDES, Stephen King`s dark detective series that somehow flew under the radar, is finally streaming – and it`s everything fans of slow-burn psychological thrillers have been craving.
More at irishfilmtv.com.
Andrew Scott is about to steal another movie and we`re absolutely here for it! 🔍
The trailer for WAKE UP DEAD MAN: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY has dropped, and our beloved Irish actor is joining Daniel Craig`s Benoit Blanc for what looks like the most deliciously twisted instalment yet.
Scott plays bestselling author Lee Ross, one of several suspects in a seemingly impossible murder that rocks a small town`s religious community.
More at irishfilmtv.com.
From GLADIATOR II`s arena to the quiet forests of Maine collecting folk songs on wax cylinders—Paul Mescal`s latest role in THE HISTORY OF SOUND might be his most vulnerable yet.
Now on @amazonprime, the film follows Lionel, a shy musician from a Kentucky farm in the 1910s, who meets David White (Josh O`Connor) at the New England Conservatory.
More at irishfilmtv.com.
