Review of Happy Anniversary (2018) by Kevin P — 03 Apr 2018

Strengths: When you're a low-budget independent film, you know you aren't going to get the luxury of things like special effects and such. That means your movie must be led by strong performances, a great script, and some creative ideas. Happy Anniversary hits all those notes, with two leads who deliver enchanting performances and have great chemistry. The writing is very good and the story gets told in a different fashion than most similar titles, which helps it stand out. There's a ton of charm to basically every scene and you'll find yourself rooting for the couple to just be happy, whether together or apart.

Weaknesses: The story gets told in a pretty creative manner, but there are a few things that take a predictable route. The characters, though likeable and delightful, are somewhat cliché. When Mollie goes off on a tangent about her concern for her ticking biological clock, you kind of groan because it's a "been there, done that" scenario. There are also tons of movies around where the issue is that they're too long, but this one is simply too short. At just 78 minutes, not everything is given enough time to develop, and that is especially true for the supporting characters.

Overall: If you're a fan of this kind of movie and the actors involved, you'll certainly find good reason to enjoy this. There's quality writing and acting, as well as some clever storytelling methods. With more time, it would've allowed for other things to develop in ways that they didn't in just 78 minutes.