Rating of
2/4
REMAKES!!!
Matthew Brady - wrote on 12/06/14
Another remake of a movie that was already alright back in the 80's and 90's, and you can already guess that this movie isn't all that good.
The story is about a orphan living under the tyrannical rule of Miss Hannigan finds her life changing for the better when she has a chance run-in with the wealthy Benjamin Stacks.
Annie the musical is very well known for it's leading character and it's songs that seem to be getting stuck into peoples heads. Annie as a character in the older films seem like a strong, playful and full of heart girl as she wants a happy life for herself and the other orphan girls. Annie is smart a enough to see that life can be cruel but she tries not to let that bring her or the other orphan girls down as she sings happy songs to them and herself just to keep they spirit alive, but in this version she's a perfect little goody two shoes that has many friends across the neighborhood and seems happy where she is, and the orphan girls who seem like their having fun, and at one point she get's what she wants and everyone towards the end is happy and really it's really stupid as well. I know what you all are saying, "Put Matt it's a kids film what do you expect the next Schindler's list", no I expect I good a movie no matter if it's a kids film or not, I'm to review movies to tell you what's good and bad, and this movie is bad, kid film or not, movies are movies, just because you say "it's a kids film so that means it's okay", is just utter bullshit and a cheap way of defending a film, and let's not forget that this is a movie that's open for other peoples thoughts of the film.
I wasn't the biggest fan of Annie musical and the movies 80's and 90's version, I don't hate them, it's not my kind of movies but I do respect those movies as a musical and them actually trying, not like this movie.
Will Gluck has proved himself of being a 50/50 directed for me and most of everyone he seen his movies. He's a okay director, but I wouldn't call him a fantastic director as well. Now he directed this movie and now his weakness has started to shown, because he didn't do the musical and the other films justices and to be honest he should have done re-shouts and re-writes to this film.
Now the songs in the original was know as classic music lyrics that has been sang people most of everyone and to be honest I found the songs in original to be very catcher and I'm not going to lie but at one point I started singing one of them. The songs in the new movie are so freaking annoying and have be remade in a bad way that this move actually stabbed it self for doing that. The songs sometimes comes out of nowhere and have no purpose in some scenes, and that's sad to hear.
Cameron Diaz plays Miss Hannigan and man is she missed cast for the role, she was over the top as this character and I know the character is supposed to by like that and Diaz could have pulled it off, but it didn't work at all, because as I said before the heart and story isn't there and Miss Hannigan isn't there as well. I feel really sorry for Cameron Diaz, because i know shes a good actress and can pull of great performances, but this one isn't sadly.
The only good things in this movie: Quvenzhané Wallis did a good job playing Annie. Will Stacks and Annie's friendship together was very cute and done very well, it's the only thing in this movie that actually got something from the original play and movie.
Overall Annie the 2014 version is a movie that in 5 years time it will be forgotten as another Hollywood remake that went no where. This isn't as god awful as I thought it was going to be, but it could have been better, just like other Hollywood remakes.
