WAITING FOR ANYA

Must watch.

Real life movie.

I've never seen a movie that covered this area of the European occupation.I really liked the conflicting relationship between Thomas Kretschmann's character as the German corporal and the young french boy,which the tone of the movie has rarely been seen where there is sympathy for a (grieving) father that just so happens to be apart of the invading force. At the same time not taking away from the plot of helping the young Jewish children into Spain.

Excellent story line although I am impartial because I like WWII stories

Despite all of its flaws (discussed in other reviews) I found this movie mesmerizing. The scenery was drop dead gorgeous (I'm a sucker for mountain landscapes), and the characters totally believable. What do you do when under a cruel enemy occupation and you need to preserve your own humanity? This film explores that question, and makes you think. How would YOU respond?I especially liked how the movie did not present the Germans as cardboard monsters, but rather as human beings, flawed like all of us but not beyond redemption.I do agree with another reviewer that the shooting scene near the movie's end was jarringly out of place, and should never have been there.

it is common knowledge things depicted in the movie happened. Although, overall, the writers seem too kind to the Nazis, sometimes making them even seem passive, and in one case very nice. Of course, not everyone was a monster. There were excceptions. However, since that character was a corporal, I doubt his Lt would have been so lenient. But, worth the watch.

I choose to like it..I could have watched something else.Probably have a hard time remembering the movie's name... But I will remember some moments forever.I don't know how to say it any other way than this:Felt more like a story being told, than a project focused on presentation and acting. Definitely more of a Film than a Movie. A compelling but not overly dramatized piece. It was easy to maintain detachment so I was more of a viewer than a participant. The story-teller's narration moments maintain that feeling. Maybe that is good. It is well done in its own way. The settings are fantastic. The production is good.It was a movie I had marked for when there was nothing else that compelled me.I have to be in a special mood then. What ends up happening usually is that I see a film that has merit and some great elements worth seeing.... but not having a need especially to brag to anyone about.The key here is, though,.... Those "maybe one day" films usually end up having something in it "for me" that I would never have experienced otherwise.

Somehow the writers and producers want the audience to believe that the four year old girl at the beginning of the movie turned out to be a teenager in the end. Yet the 12-year-old at the beginning of the movie never aged at all.Children who were supposed to be in hiding to be taken across the mountains to Spain simply ended up going from barn to cave back to barn again until the very last 15 minutes. There was nothing in this movie about any children being taken across the border into Spain. No treacherous tracks across the mountains and streams in the dead of night. No sneaking around hiding from German patrols.Meanwhile the ‘saviors’ were running all over the mountains herding sheep while a German soldier spent days and days in the mountains looking for eagles nests, not people trying to escape the country or sabotage the German war effort.So bad it was comical: The father of the main character, the young boy, was supposed to be a French soldier who had been in a POW camp. Yet the Germans let him out because he injured his left hand.Anyone with a minute amount of knowledge of World War II knows that to be utterly ridiculous. It makes you wonder if the writer’s had ever read a history book about World War IIThere other senseless scenes involving food. The villagers were apparently allowed to keep their pigs , sheep, goats. But the Germans raided the one store in town and took all the vegetables and canned goods.The widow who was harboring the children had access to lots and lots of money to buy more food than anyone else in the village. Yet the Germans never questioned her about where the money came from or where the food went to.Later in the movie the villagers were gathered in a bar drinking wine. Where did this wine come from in a war torn country in the mountains where there are no Vineyards? Where did this stash of wine come from?There is much more in this movie that doesn’t make any sense, doesn’t follow any appropriate timeline, does not have anything to do with the supposed plot of saving children from the Germans.To conclude other than the location there is nothing redeemable about it.

Très bon film. Super exemple d’entraide de la communauté et individuel. Je suggère fortement le visionnement.

This film is based on the children’s story of the same name by Michael Morpurgo, set in the mountain village of Lescun in the western French Pyrenees. It’s loosely based on true events during World War 2 and depicts the part played by villagers and shepherds in hiding Jewish children from the Nazis, smuggling them over the mountains into Spain and, ultimately, to life and freedom.The story is told from the viewpoint of a young teenage boy, Jo Lalande, played by Noah Schnapp. While tending his family’s sheep in the mountains near the village, he stumbles upon a secret network of local people, led by widow Horcada (Anjelica Huston), who have set up a hiding place for Jewish children ready to be smuggled over the border – at this point a group of seven children joined by Benjamin, a Jewish father who is waiting for his daughter Anya. When a detachment of German troops arrive unexpectedly to garrison the village and patrol the border approaches, Jo and his family become more deeply involved in the concealment and rescue operation.There are further threads to the story, including the involvement of other local people and the ‘good’ German corporal in the garrison who befriends Jo, his qualities well expressed in the most touching scenes in the movie. The authentic backdrop of the centuries-old mountain village, rudely transformed by the arrival of the German soldiers and their vehicles, contributes greatly to the atmosphere, as does the magnificent mountain scenery. It’s perhaps worth noting that, while the mountain scenes were indeed filmed in the Cirque de Lescun and places close by in the Vallée d’Aspe, the film-makers actually used the nearby village of Accous as a stand-in for Lescun in the street, church and square scenes because Lescun was too small and remote to accommodate the people, vehicles and equipment needed for filming. However, none of this should be noticeable to viewers unless they know the area. One other minor anomaly is that the large birds of prey seen from time to time are actually vultures, and not eagles as indicated in the dialogue. But, as the high-flying symbols of freedom they represent, they play their roles equally well.Being a children’s story it’s told here from a relatively innocent viewpoint, with inevitable references to the horrors engulfing Europe at the time but without depicting these directly; the only death occurring in the film, although very sad, is almost accidental. The result is that the storytelling is somewhat underpowered and lacking in excitement, let alone in any serious suspense, although the musical score is attractive and adds to the atmosphere. The acting is generally good, dialogue being in English with French or German accents as appropriate. Anjelica Huston is especially well suited to the role of the widow Horcada, effectively made up to depict the rough-hewn features of the mountain people. Young Noah Schnapp is excellent at conveying the initial wide-eyed innocence of the shepherd boy Jo, with emerging resourcefulness and courage added to the mix as the story develops. Thomas Kretschmann is a considerable asset, making a sensitive and personable contribution as the German corporal, and Tómas Lemarquis provides a good foil as the standard-issue, swaggering Nazi Lieutenant Weissmann. Jean Reno is also convincing in appearance and manner as Jo’s grandpa.Looking at the movie on its own, it should by rights probably get three stars. But then there’s the splendid mountain scenery to enjoy. Furthermore, the story represents a belated but well-deserved tribute to the genuine humanity, bravery and resilience of the local people - who also, by the way, smuggled escaping Allied prisoners-of-war and downed RAF aircrews over the border to safety, but that’s another story. Lastly, the bonus feature at the end, including interviews with several of the actors as well as Michael Morpurgo’s own entertaining account of how he came to know the village of Lescun and thus to write the story, is a further asset. So, for these reasons, I have found it a worthwhile and enjoyable watch that deserves a fourth star.

I really enjoyed watching this film , The story was unpredictable so was very gripping about a young boy who works as a shepherd alongside his schooling who goes into a barn of a neighbouring farm hoping to find a bear cub that has been saved but instead he finds a little girl. The story is about a community of peoples braveary in the face of the Nazi Occupation , It brings up questions of right and wrong as one of the Nazi Captains befriends the boy and his friend who has learning difficulties. In the shadow of this is the seven Jewish children being hidden on the farm and the women and her son in law who have their own tragic circumstances. The son in law gave his daughter to a stranger on a train to prevent her going to a concentration camp and the title is that they are waiting for young Anya to come home. The story is at times bitter sweet. It is very powerful and I now want to read the book. A must watch.

Attracted to the film after seeing Jean Reno on the cover of the DVD and then reading a synopsis that sounded like it could all make for a good film, I watched a film that was a disappointment in a number of ways."Waiting for Anya" is an English language film, and whilst that might work well for many it was a disappointment for me not to have been filmed in French and German etc. For me that would have been preferable - but that was not what was made.Jean Reno is a fantastic actor for me, whether in French language films or in films in other languages, but he didn't shine in "Waiting for Anya" but - that was maybe not his fault. The film looked under-rehearsed, badly directed, clichéd, it had a terrible (if not untypical) wardrobe department, and poor dialogue sound.Something that I find annoying in films are clothes that should look well-worn and creased and dirty (like the working clothes of a mountain shepherd perhaps) that look incredibly clean and crease-free in every shot even after running through the mountain forest or taking a nap on the ground. Yes I know it will help with continuity and cost but I still find it annoying.Much if not all of the dialogue looked as if it had been recorded in post production, which, if one becomes aware of it then it then it is a failing surely?The acting from much of the cast looked poor much of the time although that might be down to poor directing and poor editing of the film?The real events that are fictionalised in the film are truly remarkable and I think that it is a shame that they have been portrayed in such an unremarkable film.This is hard to explain and to be fair it might be down to my DVD player but the DVD played as if it was showing every other frame it had a sort of juddery feel to it if that makes sense. This might have been down to my DVD player but I would be curious if any one else noticed this?Whilst this is not I film I will be watching again, I wouldn't want to discourage any one else from watching it as others might find the film to be a rewarding experience.On the DVD (ASIN: B084PV8GBF) you get"Waiting for Anya" (1 hour 44 minutes)Scene SelectionAudio: Stereo, 5,1 SurroundExtras: "Behind the Scenes" (21 minutes), Trailer

It's a tough job making a film.Even harder in the middle of nowhere. Particularly up a high mountain pass.It is such an intriguing story, but it really didn't get going. Far too evenly paced, slow to develop and ages pass by before it gets to the crux of the story.This is based on actual events, as originally told by the elders of a high pasture mountain village. A more character driven story was then formulated into a book, whereupon this fictional film portrays a series of events explored in that book.However, there is far too much focused on a young teenage boy's point of view, who infact had little to do with the main thrust that inspired the story; the smuggling of Jewish children out of occupied France into neutral Spain.The odd hue of this film is a kin to The Sound of Music & Oliver mixed in with Lassie come Home & Hannibal Brooks. It really doesn't gell well.Lovely photography, haunting music, fabulous acting and great idea. But the great idea only had a few minutes of screen time. Really, this would have been more apt and poignant if the script and production went in the direction of the Jewish children's POV and added in the villagers who helped them with some kind assistance of the village children.Non-the-less, it's a great effort and well made film for a younger audience. And perhaps that is its main purpose; to inspire the young people of today.