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Cast: Taissa Farmiga, Mark Strong, Brian Cox

Director: Jorge Dorado

Genre: Thriller

Year: 2014

Rating: R

Broken by personal struggles, “mind detective” John Washington (Mark Strong, Sherlock Holmes, Kick-Ass) – blessed (and damned) with the ability to observe people’s memories – reluctantly returns to his job, a shell of his former self.

His superior (Brian Cox, Bourne Supremacy, RED) assigns him to what he believes to be a simple case. Brilliant and talented, but deeply troubled, 16-year-old Anna Greene (Taissa Farmiga, FX’s American Horror Story, The Bling Ring), the daughter of a wealthy family, has been severely traumatized by violence and desperately needs help.

But in this darkly twisted, pulse-pounding thriller, nothing is what it appears … Is it possible the beautiful and haunted Anna isn’t as innocent as she seems?

"Anna" tells the story of Anna, a young, troubled Teen who is on a hunger strike against her parents. John is a Mind Detective working for the agency, Mindscape. After taking some time off after having an episode during one of his memory sessions John who is troubled himself by his own past returns to work mainly because he is low on money. His boss gives him what seems like a simple case, get 16 year old Anna to eat again. After arriving and getting to know the girl a bit more John decides to has a few mind sessions with Anna where he discovers that there is a lot more going on than he was led to believe. Anna has done some horrible things or has she? Some people including her stepfather believes she is deeply disturbed but Anna insists she is the victim and has not done anything wrong. It is up to John to weed through it all and determine if she is indeed a bad egg or an abused young lady who is desperate for help.

I was interested in seeing this film after watching the trailer and seeing the cast. The film immediately grabs your attention and it sucks you right in to the story. I was engaged right from the start and I was kept right at the edge of my seat the entire time. The film is full of atmosphere, tension and suspense with a good dose of mystery to top it off. Just when you think you know what is going on another twist is brought your way.

The cast did a fantastic job playing their roles including, Taissa Farmiga as Anna, Mark Strong as John and Brian Cox who never gives a bad performance as John's friend and boss. The supporting cast were all amazing as well.

"Anna" is a slow moving thriller but it is intentional and it is never boring, you are glued to the screen waiting and wanting to know more, is this young girl manipulating John or is she as innocent as she lets on she is? Those questions are with you all the way to the end when secrets are exposed and shocking truths are revealed. I really liked this film, this is the kind of psychological thriller you tell your friends about after you see it. If you like a good thriller that gets in your head then give "Anna" a shot. There is a lot to like about the film and the ending is one you will not see coming.

Available on DVD and it is presented in widescreen with an aspect ratio of 16 x 9 (2.35:1) and 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround Sound. You can order it HERE.

Independent cinema is where you find the gems nowadays and "Anna" is another example of that so be sure to check it out.

Released by Vertical Entertainment

**** Out Of *****