All the ingredients are here for what could (should?) be an outstanding comedy-drama. Andy Garcia needs no introduction; Dafne Keen roared into the spotlight with her breakout performance in 2017's 'Logan.' There's a strong supporting cast on hand, including not least Lauren Vélez and Jeanne Tripplehorn. The setting (Puerto Rico in the wake of Hurricane Maria) is sadly all too perfect, the sights and sounds of the island as a filming location are welcome, and the scenario is ripe for storytelling and noteworthy themes in the background. Charles McDougall shows a firm technical grasp of the medium as director; Cris Cole's screenplay is sincere and heartfelt, with definite cleverness sprinkled throughout. And still, with all this potential, 'Ana' struggles to actually feel genuine and meaningful. It's not completely terrible, but the most consistent feeling I had while watching was a recognition of contrivance. This could have been a great movie, but instead I don't know if it even rises above "average."
The title character is elevated as a quirky, precocious, free-spirited young girl without any inhibitions or sense of boundaries. I suppose this is fine in and of itself, but the character is written with such a forthright sense of "Just go for it!" that every illustration of these traits comes off as forced and false. Based on 'Logan' alone I adore Keen, but it feels like she was cast here simply in defiance of the image that's been projected onto her, and while it's not her fault, she has a hard time making the material pop. Garcia seems to be straining with all his might to inhabit Rafael and earnestly bring his part to life. Every step along the duo's path, no matter how honest or far flung, wholehearted or bombastic, seems grossly inauthentic, like a modern day rendition of Winston Groom's novel 'Forrest Gump' - a series of misadventures smashed together with the dual ethos of "Yes, we're doing this" and "why not?" without any real weight behind it. 'Ana' is filled to the brim with content and possibilities, so why does it feel so empty?
There are moments scattered throughout when Keen is simply brilliant, or Garcia is, or they demonstrate magnetic, delightful chemistry as scene partners. There are sparks of true wit in Cole's writing. This is well made from a technical standpoint, including Sonnel Velázquez's cinematography. There are also moments when it seems like everyone involved is just phoning in their contributions, and are in no way invested in their own feature, or others that are plainly overcooked or far too On The Nose. Some scenes of intended gravity let us really feel it; many outright fail to, to my absolute chagrin. The picture is also extraordinarily brisk in its pacing, never particularly letting us catch our breath; the first twenty minutes alone are a veritable whirlwind, and 'Ana' never lets up thereafter. Being so rushed, leaping from this to that, it's kind of astounding that any beat at all, any inclusion, is able to stick the landing and make the slightest impression. This film might have been a roller coaster, being in turn wonderfully uplifting or woefully downtrodden, and that's how the writing comes across in the broad strokes. In its details, however, and in the execution, these 105 minutes just blithely coast along.
As if all this weren't enough, the movie has extreme difficulty ever achieving anything resembling the right tone; it feels downright confused. It is exceedingly rare - countable on one hand - when the comedy or the drama strikes just the right chord. Those themes that the narrative dabbles with (hypocrisy, fraud, desperation, redemption, family, whatever) are realized not with total fidelity, but instead more as at best warped facsimiles. To be frank, I'm sad and disappointed. It's not that this is altogether awful, and I think everyone on hand gave freely of themselves to bring the story to life, to try to let this be the compelling saga it could be. The end result, however - even with astonishingly infrequent blips of value - is so limp, uneven, and unconvincing that it somehow feels worse than it would have were the picture just poorly made in the first place; 1 hour and 45 minutes have rarely felt so long. I wish nothing but the best for McDougall, Cole, Garcia, and all others involved; I look forward to seeing what Keen delivers in the future. Unfortunately, 'Ana' isn't even half the movie it may have been, and even if one is a major fan of Garcia, Keen, or others on hand, I'd just be lying if I offered this as a recommendation. Whatever it is you're hoping to get out of this, there are other titles you should be watching instead, or perhaps rewatching.
The title character is elevated as a quirky, precocious, free-spirited young girl without any inhibitions or sense of boundaries. I suppose this is fine in and of itself, but the character is written with such a forthright sense of "Just go for it!" that every illustration of these traits comes off as forced and false. Based on 'Logan' alone I adore Keen, but it feels like she was cast here simply in defiance of the image that's been projected onto her, and while it's not her fault, she has a hard time making the material pop. Garcia seems to be straining with all his might to inhabit Rafael and earnestly bring his part to life. Every step along the duo's path, no matter how honest or far flung, wholehearted or bombastic, seems grossly inauthentic, like a modern day rendition of Winston Groom's novel 'Forrest Gump' - a series of misadventures smashed together with the dual ethos of "Yes, we're doing this" and "why not?" without any real weight behind it. 'Ana' is filled to the brim with content and possibilities, so why does it feel so empty?
There are moments scattered throughout when Keen is simply brilliant, or Garcia is, or they demonstrate magnetic, delightful chemistry as scene partners. There are sparks of true wit in Cole's writing. This is well made from a technical standpoint, including Sonnel Velázquez's cinematography. There are also moments when it seems like everyone involved is just phoning in their contributions, and are in no way invested in their own feature, or others that are plainly overcooked or far too On The Nose. Some scenes of intended gravity let us really feel it; many outright fail to, to my absolute chagrin. The picture is also extraordinarily brisk in its pacing, never particularly letting us catch our breath; the first twenty minutes alone are a veritable whirlwind, and 'Ana' never lets up thereafter. Being so rushed, leaping from this to that, it's kind of astounding that any beat at all, any inclusion, is able to stick the landing and make the slightest impression. This film might have been a roller coaster, being in turn wonderfully uplifting or woefully downtrodden, and that's how the writing comes across in the broad strokes. In its details, however, and in the execution, these 105 minutes just blithely coast along.
As if all this weren't enough, the movie has extreme difficulty ever achieving anything resembling the right tone; it feels downright confused. It is exceedingly rare - countable on one hand - when the comedy or the drama strikes just the right chord. Those themes that the narrative dabbles with (hypocrisy, fraud, desperation, redemption, family, whatever) are realized not with total fidelity, but instead more as at best warped facsimiles. To be frank, I'm sad and disappointed. It's not that this is altogether awful, and I think everyone on hand gave freely of themselves to bring the story to life, to try to let this be the compelling saga it could be. The end result, however - even with astonishingly infrequent blips of value - is so limp, uneven, and unconvincing that it somehow feels worse than it would have were the picture just poorly made in the first place; 1 hour and 45 minutes have rarely felt so long. I wish nothing but the best for McDougall, Cole, Garcia, and all others involved; I look forward to seeing what Keen delivers in the future. Unfortunately, 'Ana' isn't even half the movie it may have been, and even if one is a major fan of Garcia, Keen, or others on hand, I'd just be lying if I offered this as a recommendation. Whatever it is you're hoping to get out of this, there are other titles you should be watching instead, or perhaps rewatching.