The Verdict On Annie: Is It Worth Your Money??

Rating: 2/5 Stars

Cast: Quvenzhané Wallis (Annie Bennett), Jamie Foxx (Will Stacks), Rose Byrne (Grace Farrell), Bobby Cannavale (Guy), Tracie Thomas (Dorian Missick), David Zayas (Lou), Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (Nash) and Cameron Diaz (Miss Colleen Hannigan)

Director: Will Gluck

Synopsis: Annie is an energetic, joyful foster kid who was left by her parents when she was still a baby. She grew up with her unkind foster mom, Miss Hannigan. Despite the hardship that she has to go through, Annie never runs out of hope that someday she will find a family who will treat her as their own. This is where Will enters the picture. He believes that he is an angel in disguise sent to help Annie fulfil her dreams of having a complete family. He temporarily adopts Annie who is smart enough to know that she will only be used to rescue Will’s hopeless mayoral candidacy. Will Annie find a family of her own or will they both find a loving purpose to accept each other?

Review:

Annie is a comedy-drama film based on the 1977 Broadway musical of the same title, which also gave spotlight to the 1924 Little Orphan Annie, a comic strip penned by Harold Gray. It shines light to the famous depression-era musical as Gluck brings a new touch to the story during the time of recession and monstrous technology advancement. The film was released in December 2014 and has received both positive and negative reviews from critics.

While many speculated that the film was released to divert the heavy attention away from the controversial The Interview, Columbia Pictures thought that Annie can serve as a good watch for everyone who was feasting on their Christmas treats and turkey. Apparently, not all moviegoers think the same. Gluck’s superfluous desire to contemporize the film has made it unimaginatively woven and it lacks the innovation that most people are expecting from a 21^st century film.

 Aside from its witless and uninspiring screenplay, the music is highly unimpressive which comes as a big surprise for many especially knowing that Will Smith and Jay Z are among the producers behind the scene. It’s unforgivable that their musical genius seems to run out of their heads just when it is needed the most. Has Gluck ever seen a musical show? We certainly didn’t know but Annie has made Smith and Jay Z look like they are strangers when it comes to complementing a film with the most suitable music.

Jamie Foxx’s vocal is on-point and his acting skills are reflected in every scene just like the award-winning Wallis. These two actors certainly rescued the film from other casts who failed to match their energy. This includes Cameron Diaz who struggles to pour her acting expertise as she left you with awkward and unfunny scenes where comedy is expected.

Is it worth your money? This film is a failed remake that features poor cinematography and the absence of creativity. While it intends to show Annie’s hard-knock life, you may think that it, instead, did a good job on featuring a hard-knock incarnation of the classic musical.