Waiting for Anya

Beautifully filmed in a mountainous area of France near Spain. The point of view of a young boy roped into help Jewish children hiding and then fleeing over to Spain. There are some Allo Allo cliched characters played by famous actors including Jean Reno and the quintessential good German Thomas Kretschmann. Angelica Huston is surprisingly okay. There isn't much wrong with the show but it feels boring and cliched with one dimensional characters. But if you accept it is for younger audiences then it's okay for what it is. After all the writer is War Horse's Michael Morpugo.

Anjelica Huston is the widow "Horcada" who has for quite a while been serving as a conduit to help escaping Jewish and French citizens across the Pyrenee mountains and into the safety of neutral Spain. The arrival of a small but menacing Nazi detachment in their village, however, makes this task even more perilous - and she is fast running out of allies. It's at this point that she turns to the young "Jo" (Noah Schnapp) who is more accustomed to herding sheep, and soon he is providing an essential link trying to get the escapees to freedom. The story here is not that unfamiliar, but there is a solid effort from the engaging young Schnapp and the writing does try to humanise the occupiers - largely via the persona attributed to the corporal (Thomas Kretschmann) - as the story gradually develops. Tómas Lemarquis exudes a fairly subtle degree of menace as their commander and a solid supporting cast including Jean Reno and Sadie Frost help keep this nicely shot, if largely unremarkable and maybe just a bit too wordy, drama moving along to the only denouement we were ever going to get. It is a nice, feel-good, film that makes for a perfect afternoon tea and biscuits watch. Don't expect anything gritty or harrowing, just enjoy some stunning cinematography and a few characterful leading performances.

Extremely hard to follow i still don't know what was happening.

..enough drama which would have appeal to a teenage audience in particular Beautifully location also

Waiting For Anya tells the story of a small village in the French Pyrenees. The scenery is beautiful and you'll feel immersed.

I think many people looking to learn more about the time period will enjoy this film.