Watch Burning Annie

Burning Annie is a quirky indie film that follows the life of Max (Gary Lundy), a college student who prefers the company of fictional characters to real people. His worldview is in contrast to his quirky roommate, Dave (Brian Klugman) and his love interest, Annie (Sara Downing). Max has been obsessed with Annie in his mind for years, and when they finally meet, he finds out that the real Annie is quite different from what he had imagined. Nonetheless, he decides to pursue a relationship with her.

Annie is having a tough time dealing with the recent death of her best friend and ex-boyfriend, Duncan. Despite her vulnerability, she and Max start seeing each other, but it's not easy. Annie begins to find Max's fixation on fictional characters a bit bizarre, and their relationship starts to unravel. Max's obsession with Annie is due to the similarities he sees between her and the main character in his favorite novel--Annie from "Catcher in the Rye," who famously tells Holden, "I'm the catcher in the rye, and I see myself rescuing little children from falling off the edge of the cliff... I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye and all... And I'm standing on the edge of some crazy cliff. What I have to do, I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff. I mean if they're running and they don't look where they're going I have to come out from somewhere and catch them." However, when Max's obsession with literature and his inability to cope with reality becomes too much for Annie to deal with, she decides to break things off.

In the aftermath of the relationship, Max spirals into a deep depression. To help him get over the breakup, his therapist recommends that he participate in a bizarre ceremony, which involves burning his favorite literary characters in a bonfire. Max starts to see the world very differently, realizing he should try to forge a relationship with a real person rather than fictional characters. Meanwhile, Annie is trying to find her way to move on from her past relationship and her journey of healing leads her to unexpected places.

Burning Annie is an engaging film that keeps the viewer engaged throughout. The directors are able to address some hefty themes surrounding literature, obsession, and coping with grief, while still maintaining a quirky comedy. It has a clever approach to storytelling, where the viewer can peel back layers to discover more about the characters' complex personalities.

The characters are also interesting; each has their own unique struggles with love and life. Gary Lundy's portrayal of Max is spot on, and he effectively depicts the character's growth. Sara Downing plays Annie's vulnerability and strength flawlessly. The supporting cast is also impressive, with Kim Murphy providing a strong performance as the quirky and insecure Cecelia.

The film has an excellent score, which enhances the poignant moments of the movie. Additionally, the cinematography is well-executed, with intimate close-ups during important emotional moments.

One of the significant underlying themes of the film is the struggles of becoming independent adults. The movie shows how college students struggle with their identity and developing relationships. It presents how challenging it is to navigate life with a newly found independence and sexual identity. It also depicted how grief can impact our ability to move forward in life.

Overall, Burning Annie is a heartfelt indie movie that is well worth a watch. The movie uses quirky comedy to address complex themes, making it more accessible to a wide audience. It is a mature and thoughtful approach to storytelling, and it's definitely worth watching.

Burning Annie is a 2004 comedy with a runtime of 1 hour and 35 minutes. It has received mostly poor reviews from critics and viewers, who have given it an IMDb score of 5.5 and a MetaScore of 38.