Annie - La felicità è contagiosa

'ANNIE': Two and a Half Stars (Out of Five)

Modern-day adaptation of the 1977 Broadway musical (of the same name), which was based on the 1924 comic strip 'Little Orphan Annie'. It stars Quvenzhane Wallis (of 'BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD' fame), as Annie, and Jamie Foxx, as billionaire Will Stacks (an update on the Daddy Warbucks character, from the comic and musical). It costars Rose Byrne, Cameron Diaz, Bobby Cannavale, David Zayas and Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje. It was directed by Will Gluck (who also directed 'EASY A' and 'FRIENDS WITH BENEFITS') and written by Gluck and Aline Brosh McKenna. I don't think it's nearly as enjoyable as the 1982 film version (which I grew up on) but the music is still good (and there's three new songs).

The story, once again, centers on a ten-year-old orphan named Annie (Wallis). She lives at the home of a mean alcoholic, named Colleen Hannigan (Diaz), with four other foster children. Colleen is very abusive to the kids, constantly making them clean her apartment, and only takes care of them so she can collect money from the state. Annie dreams of being reunited with her parents, who promised they'd come back for her (long ago). She runs into New York City mayoral candidate Will Stacks (Foxx), while running home one day, and falls to the ground in the streets. Stacks saves her from being hit, by a truck, and the incident is caught on video. The video then goes viral and Stacks sees it as an excellent opportunity to save his failing campaign. An odd relationship develops between the two.

The film is filled with corny jokes, and bad acting, and it's even more cheesy than the 1982 movie (which I still love, for nostalgic reasons). The music is great, still though (especially my favorite: 'It's the Hard Knock Life'), and the movie does have a positive and upbeat message for kids (like it's source material). It's other saving grace is Quvenzhane Wallis, who has some really powerful scenes (towards the end of the film). She could have delivered another award worthy performance, if her part had been written a little better (she is nominated for a Golden Globe though, but doesn't quite deserve it). For those reasons the movie isn't horrible but the 1982 version is much better.

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... and always form my own opinion. I took my 6 year old niece to see this movie today, and it was a perfect "feel-good" family holiday film. The original Annie came out in June of 1982 when I myself was 6, and I remember how much I loved the story and the singing, watching it (and singing along!) quite a few times in my childhood. Well, we sat down together last night to watch the original, and we BOTH had a hard time staying engaged throughout the whole thing. FDR and the New Deal? War bonds? Because the 1982 plot was set in the period of the comic's popularity, not the actual filming date of the movie, there were a lot of references that never did make sense to me growing up. The new movie, set in modern New York City, was relatable for today's kids (criticize all you want, but there are NOT ENOUGH positive non-Disney human characters out there, no matter how much people call it pandering). The script had its share of small flaws, and no one can ever outdo Burnett and Finney, but Wallis was adorable and very likable in the lead role... her personality was believable and not over the top, and oh yeah, she's black, though I don't think my niece noticed.

It is unfortunate so much money (65 million) and so much talent (Quvenzhane Wallis, Jamie Foxx and Cameron Diaz) did not equal a better movie. A musical should have great singers; this did not. Foxx, the orphans and Quvenzhane were fine, but they were not great. Consider Dreamgirls, Hairspray, Fiddler on the Roof and Oklahoma. Along with the actors singing in character, there were powerful voices. No one in Annie was a standout musically.

Rose Byrne did her job in Damages, but not so much in this movie. The remainder of the cast was competent; they had their occasional moments.

This rendition of Annie was okay. But, with a few cast changes and voice lessons, it could have been so much better.

Annie is an age old story of an orphan struggling to survive and is magically swept off her feet by a reluctant grouch who suddenly gets a warm heart and yadda yadda yadda. Yes, an updated version of Annie sounded awesome and yes, some of us had hope for it. And HELL NO is this what Annie should have become. This is perhaps one of the most ridiculous, over produced, annoyingly unoriginal remakes in recent years. With a cast like this film, starring Jamie Foxx, Quvenzhane Wallis, Cameron Diaz and Rose Byrne, this should have been a very competent film but it is so bogged down with a ridiculous hip-hop shroud of the musical numbers and poorly executed dance numbers that it is hard to take this seriously. The biggest culprit is Will Gluck, the man directs this with absolutely no flavor. It isn't hard to make the story of Annie heart warming, not in the very least. It is one of the best told stories along with being one of the best musicals of all time. Even if you were asleep at the wheel for most of the production, you could still get something out of it. Gluck fails to do pretty much everything when it comes to direction. It is lazy and unoriginal. To be frank, the only reason why I'm giving this a 3 instead of a 10 is Wallis' performance. She was truly awesome as Annie and it is a shame that the film wasn't even a fraction as good as her performance. Overall, this is a film that will more than likely have you pounding your fist against your head for the entire duration of the film...oh yeah, it is THAT bad.

Can't believe the negative reviews! This was fun, modern, funny and entertaining. Good for kids and adults and there's a great cast too. Don't let the reviews put you off.