Parker's Anchor Review

Running time: 110 minutes

Directed by: Marc Hampson.

What's it about: Grieving a great loss, Krystal Parker finds peace in reuniting with her childhood best friend. She builds strength in stepping out into the world and with the support of a small-town community, she finds love when she opens herself to new possibilities.

The verdict: Protagonist Krystal Parker appears to have a perfect life - a successful and handsome husband and an exciting life in the big city. Yet appearances can be deceiving, and Krystal's seemingly perfect life comes tumbling down around her when she discovers that the one thing she has always dreamed of  may be beyond her reach. With her life now taking a completely different direction, Krystal moves back to the small-town of her childhood. This sets the framework for Parker's Anchor, which has a strong first act that will resonate with many audience members. In Krystal's sadness and loss, we are able to strongly emphasise with her character and this means that the audience is invested in her journey.

The others characters are strong too. I liked that they were plausible and believable. In each character, there was a trait that was recognisable - whether that be in yourself or someone that you know, it meant that you felt that you could relate to them. This may also be down to the ensemble cast, who all put in good performances. I particularly liked the friendship between Krystal and Corinne, who are played by Jennica Schwartzman and Amy Argyle respectively.

Parker's Anchor uses the analogy of an anchor in the film to explain the significance of the special relationship between a parent and a child, and I liked how this analogy was also used visually throughout the film. This was one of Parker's Anchor's biggest strengths - the way it used its visual and narrative to relay its message and to take the audience successfully from the first act to the final act.

Where Parker's Anchor fell down for me was in its running time. At 110 minutes it is not overly long, but some of the scenes felt slightly too drawn out and as a result it slowed the pace of the film thus lessening my engagement. I think a running time of 90 minutes would give the film a better pacing, and keep the audience's engagement throughout. My other issue was in the use of a voiceover. It is hard to discuss the voiceover without giving away any spoilers, but the use of a voiceover meant that certain scenes that could have had greater emotional and dramatic impact are minimised.

Overall though, I did enjoy Parker's Anchor. This is a film for anyone who has ever felt lost or experienced great loss. It's heart-warming and life-affirming, and shows you that loss doesn't have to be the end of the story, it can be the beginning of a whole new one. Parker's Anchor is held fast by its ability to show the importance of solidarity, friendship and resilience in the face of great loss.

Should you watch this film? Parker's Anchor won't appeal to everyone, but its positive message and sensitive empathy will be of interest to many. If you enjoy romantic dramas then I would recommend Parker's Anchor.