[Movie Review] Annie (2014)
Director: Will Gluck
Writers: Will Gluck, Aline Brosh McKenna
Runtime: 118 min
Main Cast:
- Jamie Foxx as Will Stacks
- Quvenzhane Wallis as Annie
- Rose Byrne as Grace
- Bobby Cannavale as Guy
- Cameron Diaz as Hannigan
Review: by Lee
The original Annie is one of my favorite musicals, and I associate it very strongly with my childhood. I was even teased, because of my name, and called Little Orphan Annie. I may not have loved the name, but I certainly loved the movie. Hence, I was extremely excited to find out that it was getting a remake. There was nothing that was going to stop me from watching it.
Annie tells the story of Annie (Wallis) , an orphan who longs for nothing more or less than to be reunited with the parents who abandoned her with a promise to come back, and Mr. Stacks (Foxx), a businessman who is a mayoral candidate but has bad poll numbers. After a surge in ratings caused by a chance meeting with Annie, Stacks is encouraged to spend more time with Annie, eventually fostering her in his home. Though they start out only doing it for the publicity, Stacks and Annie grow fond of each other.
What I Liked:
I certainly cannot say that I liked this Annie as much as I did the original, but it was an enjoyable watch. My view of the entire film was tainted, of course, by my constant comparisons, but I could see that it is a decent family movie. It seemed like a good movie for the younger generation of future musical lovers.
Quevenzhane was adorable and a solidly decent actress. She was actually less annoying than the original Annie but maintained the spunky attitude. The role really seemed to be a perfect fit for her.
Also, the musical numbers were pretty good. I was concerned about the changes that would be made to the original songs. They obviously had to be updated because I doubt kids these days know what a Mickey Finn is; consequently, there were several lyric changes and updates to the music, but the integrity of most iconic songs was kept intact.
Similarly to the songs, the plot was updated, and it seemed to be an actual improvement. The new political angle made a lot of sense and went a long way in explaining why the billionaire would need to improve his image. I enjoyed many of the other additions as well, like the movie they attended. In the original, Annie’s friends were not in attendance, and the movie wasn’t as much of a focus, but the movie in the remake made me want to see more. It was like a cornier Twilight, starring Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis.
Finally, I enjoyed the new characters. The campaign manager and the store owner were both new additions, and I thought they both were great. I especially liked the store owner. He played well off of Miss Hannigan.
What I Didn’t Like:
Most of the cast performed well, but Cameron Diaz stood out in a negative way. She was terrible. She wasn’t just a bad Miss Hannigan. She was just bad. Not even her singing was good, which was not improved by the changes to her song and brings me to my next point.
I mentioned that the updates to the songs were good, but that is not entirely true. Some songs were great, like “It’s the Hard-Knock Life” and “Maybe;” however, some were altered almost beyond recognition, like “Little Girls” and “I Think I’m Gonna Like It Here,” cut way short, like “You’re Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile,” or completely eliminated, like “Dumb Dog,” “Sandy,” and “We Got Annie.” Also, there were added songs for the sake of Jamie Foxx having something to sing, and it didn’t really fit.
Finally, the whole thing seemed somehow rushed. I don’t even know how to explain that one.
Summary
Annie was a decent movie, and people who haven’t seen the original will probably like it. However, fans of the original will probably get hung up on the changes like I did. All I thought about during the movie was how much I wanted to watch the original. The movie within the movie definitely needs to be made, though.
User Review
( votes)Images Courtesy of IMDB
