DISSECTING THE DIRECTOR: Brad Anderson

Last Updated on August 5, 2021

“BRAD ANDERSON”

Brad Anderson is the type of director that has really flown under the radar for most of his career. In fact I’d say he himself is actually a hidden gem, his films aren’t as well known as they should be and his work on TV seems to come and go without a second thought. I can’t really find a reason why this is so; I actually get really excited when I see his name attached to something. His films have a real 70’s feel to them and they are both interesting in story and on a visual level. If you haven’t had the pleasure of experiencing a Brad Anderson film, I hope this dissection sets you out to find his work. And if you are familiar with him, why not go over his resume, it is something that is far from disappointing for the most part.

BEST WORK

Get Session 9 on DVD here

A number of his films could be placed here, but for me personally I would call 2001’s SESSION 9 his best. There is something so extraordinary about this film, I love it quite a bit and I have no trouble calling it one of the best genre films of the past 10 years. It may look simple on the outside but SESSION 9 is a multi-layered piece of cinema.

I discovered this film a few years after it had first come out; I believe a friend recommended it to me. I went out to Blockbuster and rented the DVD and sat down one weekend afternoon and watched it. I actually didn’t know too much about it but the cover sure looked damn creepy. What I experienced was a slow burn/psychological horror and it blew my mind. I think I sat stunned for a good 5 minutes after the film had finished, and I tried to process what I had seen. The film has stuck with me since that initial viewing, and upon several re-watches it holds up perfectly. It still sends a chill down my spine to this day and I still seem to pick up on something new each time.

This is a film best seen and experienced with as little knowledge as possible so I won’t reveal any major plot points. Basically it deals with a group of workers who are hired to remove asbestos in an abandoned hospital. Things start to turn strange and it is clear there is more going on than meets the eye. That alone should be enough, and that really just scratches the surface. All the different elements at play here work together splendidly, Anderson knew exactly what he was doing and he did it. The cast were fantastic from David Caruso (yes you read that correctly) to Peter Mullan to Josh Lucas and everyone delivered. They had the right amount of connection between one another that everything they had to experience together and separately played out exceptionally well.

Anderson has a knack for this, he knows how to maintain a slower film, he knows how to develop it and keep it interesting. The film makes use of an interesting color scheme as well and it looks amazing. The script is top notch, I mean it when I say everything works – it really does. I have trouble finding a single fault with this film; I love it. That first watch made for an unpredictable ride, it was an amazing experience and I really hope people check this film out either for the first time or again.

WORST WORK

Get Vanishing On 7th Street on DVD here
Get Vanishing On 7th Street on Blu-ray here

Yikes, it saddens me to say but Anderson does have a dark spot in his career and it is his most recent film VANISHING ON 7TH STREET. This was a film I was quite excited to see, the concept looked intriguing and the trailers were quite frightening. However the trailer might have been the best part about it, because the film did not deliver at all. In fact this might be one of the worst films I have seen all year. So what went wrong? A lot as it turns out …

First off the concept is a good one; almost everyone disappearing from a city, with nothing really working and the light fading fast. Mysterious and terrifying for sure but within the first few minutes it is clear no one knew what they were doing. It almost feels like it was a contender for an episode of ‘The Twilight Zone’ and perhaps in the right hands it would have been fine. It honestly seemed suited for a TV episode or a film anthology, the idea was stretched to 90 minutes with no idea how it should actually wrap things up.

Anderson as I said before is so capable of doing the slower burn films but not in this case as it turns out. Nothing happens, nothing is developed and the characters are so stale and one-dimensional there is no reason to care. It is also a dark film, but so dark I had trouble seeing a lot of it. I mean it is fine to be in the dark but at least find some kind of lighting so that I can see. Instead of being atmospheric it is painful to actually watch, and the scares are actually quite laughable.

The blame for this film could fall anywhere, but it seems that the script was not very good and perhaps Anderson didn’t quite get to make that he intended. Whatever the case, skip this film, I’d like to imagine it doesn’t exist in his filmography.

TRADEMARKS

Get The Machinist on DVD here
Get The Machinist on Blu-ray here

Anderson has a few obvious trademarks but I don’t think he intentionally has any. His filmmaking approach is a trademark, his films tend to have that 70’s feel to them, with the slow burn and tension filled atmospheres. He knows how to develop characters and situations and make them interesting. There are also cases of psychological elements which he also does well. His films tend to have a specific color scheme; each film has something different and unique feel to them. They also tend to take place in secluded areas for the most part, again something he can pull off pretty well. He knows how to pick a good cast; he always gets the most out of his performers. While his films are different to one another, it is always apparent that you are watching a Brad Anderson film. They just have that type of mood and atmosphere about them. He definitely likes to pay tribute to other films but usually is quite subtle about it in his execution.

HIDDEN GEM

Get Transsibierian on DVD here
Get Transsiberian on Blu-ray here

As I was preparing this column, and looking over his filmography I was actually surprised to see TRANSSIBERIAN on the list. That is a film I enjoyed a couple of years back and I had completely forgotten that he had directed it and well that it even existed. That folks is a good reason to call this a hidden gem, the film is great and no it isn’t forgettable but as it had been a few years since I saw it, you can’t blame a poor girl.

This is a great example of how to do a crime/drama/mystery/thriller successfully. It has an interesting storyline, a great location and fantastic characters. For this I certainly felt some influences from other films such as STRANGERS ON A TRAIN and RUNAWAY TRAIN to name a few. Those are great films so I can see why they influenced him, but make no mistake this really is an entity all of its own.

The film takes place aboard the Trans-Siberian train journey (China to Moscow), with our main characters Roy (Woody Harrelson) and Jessie (Emily Mortimer). Trouble strikes when a couple befriend them and it seems their intentions are not as innocent as they may seem. Again this is a film that serves best with as little prior knowledge as possible. The performances by our leads are amazing, and I think this proves why Harrelson is such an underrated actor. Emily Mortimer really pushed herself here and it is one of her best performances, throw in the lovely Kate Mara, the charming Eduardo Noriega and the legendary Ben Kingsley and you have yourself a solid cast of characters.

The direction by Anderson is once again fantastic as was the work by the cast and crew. The train setting is very tense, but the locations look so isolated as well it really adds to it all. The places they found to shoot were amazing, and the cinematography used was fantastic, overall such a great job. This is a film that I can’t recommend enough, a really great ride.

NEXT PROJECT

Brad Anderson has been attached to quite a few projects, but it seems that he is now going to be doing CONCRETE ISLAND. This project is going to reunite him with his THE MACHINIST star Christian Bale. It was announced last week at the American Film Market; the film will be an adaptation of the J.G. Ballard novel.

Plot – On a day in April, just after three o’clock in the afternoon, Robert Maitland’s car crashes over the concrete parapet of a high-speed highway onto the island below, where he is injured and, finally, trapped. What begins as an almost ludicrous predicament soon turns into horror as Maitland—a wickedly modern Robinson Crusoe—realizes that, despite evidence of other inhabitants, this doomed terrain has become a mirror of his own mind. Seeking the dark outer rim of the everyday, Ballard weaves private catastrophe into an intensely specular allegory.

OVERALL

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Through and through Anderson is a talented guy, one who goes under the radar but talented none the less. I really wish he worked more with films but the episodes of TV shows he directs are fantastic (FRINGE, THE WIRE, BOARDWALK EMPIRE, THE KILLING, TREME just to name a few) so I have no problem with him doing that. I hope he gets more recognition for what he does and more people discover his talents over time. We need more directors like him out there, ones that aren’t afraid to take risks and ones that don’t need constant action and mayhem to make things work. I salute this amazing director, and I really hope you readers go out and appreciate his work.