The film has an interesting opening scene. It at first
feels like a routine break-in scene, with the woman startled by a noise in her
home, and then relaxing when she thinks she’s safe, while we see the intruder
behind her. But suddenly there is an odd detail. She walks right by a man
without seeing him, and then is attacked by another man, while the first
watches. She locks herself in the bathroom where the tub is overflowing. That
first man is in there watching, but then is suddenly downstairs as the water
runs down toward him. The focus has switched from the woman to this man, which
is a nice surprise. He rushes upstairs to pull another woman out of the tub,
and then he and the first woman suddenly come to in a laboratory, where
Sebastian (Brian Cox) informs us, “John’s own memories are intruding.”
We learn, through a television news scene, about
Mindscape, “The world’s top memory detective agency.” The news story is
about a senator who is the target of an investigation involving embezzlement
and blackmail, but the reporter then goes into detail of the history of the use
of psychic ability in the solving of crimes and so forth. As is often the case
with news footage scenes in films, it’s not quite believable. The newscaster
would give just a brief account of the embezzlement case regarding the senator,
but wouldn’t be likely to give a history lesson. This is just exposition for
the film audience, and that’s exactly what it feels like. The exposition is
handled in a rather clunky manner in this film.
We learn that John Washington (Mark Strong), the man from
the opening scene, has returned to work several months after suffering from a
mild stroke and is in need of money. We also learn that it’s been two years
since his wife’s death, and that he hasn’t been dating in this time. Sebastian
assigns him the case of Anna, a teenager on a hunger strike. His job is simply
to get her to start eating. John quips, “Just tell her parents to hide the
fashion magazines.”
But once we get past the exposition, the film becomes
quite compelling. Anna’s home is a mansion, with a gate and security cameras.
The shot of the gate closing behind John immediately gives us the sense of his
own imprisonment, that he is now trapped in whatever lies ahead. We’re
introduced to Anna’s mother, Michelle (Saskia Reeves), and stepfather, Robert
(Richard Dillane), who tell John (and us) that Anna was always unusual.
Michelle calls her “gifted,” while Robert calls her “haunted.” We
learn that Anna wishes to go back to school, but is being kept at home because
she has cut herself. She is also under constant surveillance within the house,
that two people – Judith and Ralph – monitor the cameras from a special room.
All of this is an intriguing set-up.
And the film creates some interesting characters,
particularly John and Anna. When we meet Anna (Taissa Farmiga), she displays
some psychic ability herself, guessing what John is going to say just as he
says it. What is odder is that she finds the sound of a metronome soothing.
John asks her some questions, leading her to say my favorite line of the film:
“I’m not a sociopath, just smart enough to think like one.”
John gets down to business, telling her a bit about how
the memory viewing works, including an explanation for why that woman walked
right by him in the opening scene. Anna’s memories immediately show her stepfather
in a poor light, which begs the question, Why did he hire a memory detective?
John is able to get her to eat a sandwich in their first session. And though he
had told Sebastian he wasn’t ready to date, he immediately goes on a date with
Judith. But if things seem a bit easy for John, it soon becomes clear that
there is much more going on with this girl, and that there is something odd
about her memories. Was she abused? Did she harm others? And though he’s a
memory investigator, he very quickly becomes a real investigator, talking to
people who claim Anna ruined their lives.
I got really caught up and involved in this film, but was
disappointed with the ending. I can’t detail the problems without giving things
away. So let me just say there are some problems with the logic. Basically,
everything one character does is with a certain goal in mind. But at the end
this character does something which completely negates all that had been done
before. Plus, there are some believability issues with the ending, as John
becomes something of a moron, and as evidence is completely overlooked by the
authorities. And ultimately the film doesn’t have as much to say about memories
as I would have hoped. But the characters and set-up are really interesting,
and the performances are quite good.
Anna was directed by Jorge Dorado, and was
released on DVD on August 5, 2014.
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