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Waiting for Anya (film)

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Waiting for Anya
Theatrical release poster
Directed byBen Cookson
Written by
  • Toby Torlesse
  • Ben Cookson
Based onWaiting for Anya
by Michael Morpurgo
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyGerry Vasbenter
Edited byChris Gill
Music byJames Seymour Brett
Production
companies
  • Goldfinch
  • Fourth Culture Films
  • Bad Penny Productions
  • 13 Films
  • Artémis Productions
Distributed byVue Cinemas
Release dates
  • 16 January 2020 (2020-01-16) (Miami Jewish Film Festival)
  • 7 February 2020 (2020-02-07) (United States)
  • 21 February 2020 (2020-02-21) (United Kingdom)
Running time
109 minutes[1][2][3]
CountriesUnited Kingdom
Belgium
LanguagesEnglish
French
German
Box office$139,504[2][1]

Waiting for Anya is a 2020 historical war drama film co-written and directed by Ben Cookson. It is a film adaptation of the 1990 novel of the same name by Michael Morpurgo.[4][5][6]

The film stars Noah Schnapp, Thomas Kretschmann, Frederick Schmidt, Jean Reno, and Anjelica Huston. The film premiered at the 2020 Miami Jewish Film Festival and was released on 7 February 2020.

Plot

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The film begins in the summer of 1942, during World War II in the German occupation of France, a small village in the Pyrenees. A Jewish father named Benjamin walks his daughter, Anya, to the safety of a train fleeing France. One day, a young shepherd named Jo discovers several Jewish children hidden on a farm run by a widow, Horcada, and her son-in-law, the aforementioned Benjamin. Benjamin has lost track of Anya, but hopes to one day find her. During this time, helped by his mother-in-law, he helps the young Jews whom they protect to flee to Spain through the mountains. But this time, their mission is disrupted by the Germans who skirt the border, making it impossible to escape. Listening only to his courage, Jo decides to keep their secret and do everything to help them escape to Spain.

Supported by his grandfather, several inhabitants of the village and his father, a former prisoner of the Germans, Jo allies with Benjamin and the widow Horcada to allow the children to escape across the border. Although many children manage to escape to Spain one child becomes very sick and Benjamin takes her to the village where they are taken by the Germans. It transpires that one friendly German corporal (who lost his own daughter in a Berlin bombing) was aware of the children hiding but kept quiet about it, later telling Jo “at least we achieved something”.

One year after the war ends Anya eventually reaches the village and is welcomed by her grandmother and Jo.

Cast

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Release

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The film premiered at the Miami Jewish Film Festival on 16 January 2020,[4] and was theatrically released in the United States on 7 February 2020 by Vertical Entertainment[1] and in the United Kingdom on 21 February 2020.[2][5]

Reception

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Box office

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Waiting for Anya grossed $0 in the United States and Canada,[1] and a worldwide total of $139,504.[2]

Critical response

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On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 43% of 28 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5/10.[3] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 38 out of 100, based on five critics, indicating "generally unfavorable" reviews.[7]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Waiting for Anya (2020)". Box Office Mojo. IMDbPro. Retrieved 30 October 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d "Waiting for Anya (2020) - Financial Information". The Numbers. Nash Information Services, LLC. Retrieved 30 October 2021.
  3. ^ a b "Waiting for Anya". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
  4. ^ a b "Waiting For Anya". Miami Jewish Film Festival. Retrieved 15 August 2020.
  5. ^ a b Clarke, Cath (20 February 2020). "Waiting for Anya review – soapy second world war melodrama". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
  6. ^ Scheck, Frank (5 February 2020). "'Waiting for Anya' Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
  7. ^ "Waiting for Anya Reviews". Metacritic. Red Ventures. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
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