Anna (2019)

Directed by: Luc Besson | 120 minutes | action, thriller | Actors: Sasha Luss, Helen Mirren, Luke Evans, Cillian Murphy, Lera Abova, Alexander Petrov, Nikita Pavlenko, Anna Krippa, Aleksey Maslodudov, Eric Godon, Ivan Franek, Jean-Baptiste Puech, Adrian Can, Alison Wheeler, Andrew Howard, Jan Oliver Schroeder, Louise Parker

Luc Besson can still count on a loyal fan base. The films written and directed by him such as ‘Nikita’ (1990), ‘Léon’ (1994), ‘The Fifth Element’ (1997) and ‘Lucy’ (2014) occupy a warm place in the hearts of many film lovers. The filmmaker has never been subtle in showing his obsession with strong women: many of his films revolve around women casting off the yoke of their male oppressors. At the same time, those women all have to look appetizing, so the coin has two sides here too. This is also the case in ‘Anna’, a somewhat underexposed action thriller that appeared in cinemas in the late summer of 2019.

‘Anna’ revolves around the Russian Anna (Sasha Luss). This beautiful young woman does not have it easy. A bad boyfriend, poor living conditions, a life in poverty and no future prospects… the arrival of KGB agent Alex Tchenkov (Luke Evans) couldn’t have come at a better time. He makes her an offer, but the clever Anna gives it a favorable twist in a conversation with Alex’s boss, Olga (Helen Mirren). Anna is trained as a spy and assassin. In a test in a restaurant, she just falls short of the requirements, but shows that she has perseverance, ingenuity and a complete lack of the restaurant owner’s belongings.

The scenario of ‘Anna’ is more complicated than you think at first glance. The film initially jumps through time a few times (the prologue is set in 1985, then we jump to 1990, then we return to 1987 (and Anna turns out to have a laptop that didn’t even exist then). Also later in the film, key moments are repeated, in a way that with just a little more knowledge we see the events in a different perspective, which is nice for a while, but after about three times it gets tiring and predictable.

Anna turns out not only to be a spy, she is even a double agent. Not only that, she has both a sexual relationship with Alex (a Russian) and Lenny (Cillian Murphy), a top CIA agent. Oh yes, and to ensure her cover as a model, she lives with French lesbian model Maude (Lera Abova). Sounds plausible, right? It’s just a shame she doesn’t have any kind of chemistry with any of her lovers, although Cillian Murphy tries his very best for that.

‘Anna’ doesn’t like logic or originality: the film seems to be a mix of ‘Red Sparrow’ and ‘John Wick’. But Besson does know how to portray this story and that, despite its shortcomings, makes ‘Anna’ an entertaining action film that won’t stick, even in the hearts of Besson fans.