Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.0

Annie Blu-ray Movie Review

Should you bet your bottom dollar on this remake?

Reviewed by Martin Liebman March 6, 2015

Many movies really don't need the remakes that are made of them. Annie didn't need one. Then again, neither did The Karate Kid, but fortunately, that one worked out pretty well for Sony. 2014's Annie, unfortunately, doesn't follow suit. Director Will Gluck (Easy A, Friends with Benefits) has taken a cherished 80s film and repurposed it for the modern era, but it can't match the original in any way, beyond, perhaps, the raw slickness with which it's been assembled. Where 2010's The Karate Kid managed to maintain the spiritual underpinnings, the core themes of determination and positivity, the unbreakable bond between student and teacher, and general plot dynamics while repurposing a few odds and ends for a new generation and keeping nearly everything relatable and identifiable, the new Annie falls all over the map. It's not so much the updating that holds the movie back -- generally, the new, slick sheen suits the story and the music, even with its mild Hip-Hop, urban flavor, still maintains the basic musical motifs of the original favorite songs, keeping them readily identifiable rather than some garbled mess of modernity for the sake of making them new -- but rather the vapid, soulless flavor and flow. The film is everything a remake shouldn't be but so often is, failing to recapture the core spirit, focusing largely on the superficial and, while not ignoring the heart and soul, leaving behind the core charm and heartfelt dynamics that made 1982's version so memorably honest, spirited, and hopeful.

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Quvenzhané Wallis is little foster child Annie (doesn't have the same ring, does it?), a girl who lives in a home with both several other girls around her age and the negative, drunk, and disorderly overseer Colleen Hannigan (Cameron Diaz) who can't seem to decide if she hates the girls or her empty bank account more. Annie yearns to be reunited with her parents. She spends her nights waiting for them to appear at what she believes to be their favorite restaurant, but no luck. One day, she's nearly struck by a car but is pushed out of the way at the last moment by Will Stacks (Jamie Foxx), a wealthy cell phone magnate who is also running for mayor. He's far down in the poles, but the rescue is caught on tape, goes viral, and gets him back in the race. He's convinced to bring her on board as a campaign prop by his win-at-all-costs adviser (Bobby Cannavale). Annie suddenly finds herself swept up into a world much different than her own, but even as she settles into the luxurious confines of Stacks' fashionable home and finds a friend in his assistant Grace (Rose Byrne), she still yearns for only one thing: to find her true family.

Annie's best moments are few and far between, and even the bright little light that is Quvenzhané Wallis can't save the movie from being slowly devoured by the ever-growing void of its own soullessness. While the picture maintains the core basics of the original -- Annie's search for her parents while in de facto captivity, her time with a wealthy benefactor, a ruse to steal her away for a quick cash-grab -- one cannot help but find the movie otherwise devoid of purpose, a slowly paced, processed, dishonest, tries-too-hard, characterless film built on manufactured vitality and hanging on by the strings of the basic thematic charm and the upbeat music that support the story. Even when the film should soar -- for instance when Annie dazzles a crowd with an impromptu song at a bigwig dinner for Mr. Stacks in which he suddenly realizes the kind of person, not prop, he has before him -- Annie simply feels like its going through the paces, at best feigning tenderness and the burgeoning bond between Annie and Stacks. The movie simply never resonates with the kind of powerful, tangible, tugging-at-the-heartstrings sincerity and spirit of the 1982 film. It most certainly tries, and this updated version does have its heart in the right place, yet it lacks the organic development and flow necessary to tell the story, feeling instead like a patchwork movie that wrenches in its emotion rather than naturally builds to it.

Annie's cast is hit-or-miss, though not quite so hit-or-miss as the greater movie around it. Quvenzhané Wallis impresses with a charm and innocence but at the same time a go-get-'em and self-determined attitude that mixes well with the part's dynamics. In a movie with more than a few follies, she's arguably its best asset and, really, the only reason to watch. Jamie Foxx's performance, on the other hand, is disappointingly stiff and flat. There's little, if any, charisma, whether in the film's more frivolous bits -- when he yaks up mashed potatoes on someone -- or in the film's more sincere moments. In fact, Foxx is a reason why the film's emotional balance always feels off. He never finds that same spark or deep connection shared by Albert Finney and Aileen Quinn from the original, and that bond is arguably the single most important element in the story, more so than even core character dynamics, story themes, or the songs. Rose Byrne is terrific as Stacks' assistant and Annie's friend. Cameron Diaz offers an up-and-down effort as the perpetually drunk, ditzy, and desperate Miss Hannigan. She captures the character's wayward spirit and crudeness effectively, but she at times pushes the character a bit too far over the top and also performs the film's most disastrous song, a poorly overdubbed flop that she handles with a carelessness unbefitting of the movie.

Annie Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Genrerally, Annie looks great on Blu-ray. The digital photography leaves the movie looking lightly inorganic and flat, but there's no mistaking that city textures spring to life and resonate throughout the movie. Complex brick and concrete, not to mention little bits around convenience stores, Annie's foster home bedroom, and the slickly appointed Stacks residence dazzle with attention to detail and precision. Faces can look slightly flat at a distance, but close-ups do yield the expected depth and complexity of natural textures, and ditto clothing. Colors are vibrant and diverse. The transfer brings a beautifully rich palette to life that contrasts brightly colored attire, glowing neon, and colorful accents against a fairly gray urban backdrop. Annie's bright red dress does look a little overly saturated to the point that it almost looks digital, but it appears more a result of the way the shiny fabric catches the light than anything else. The palette does push slightly warm, which is also reflected on lightly rosy skin tones. On the downside, black levels appear a bit too murky than would be ideal, overpowering certain scenes and pushing slightly purple in others, with a sprinkling of noise evident in a couple of instances. Light aliasing is visible in one or two shots (check out the strings on a harp in the Guggenheim Museum sequence) and a hint of banding crosses some bright blue skies. On the whole, however, this transfer's strengths far outweigh its weaknesses.

Annie Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Annie features a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. The track is strong but not quite perfect, often fluctuating between aggressively active and mildly reserved. Music occasionally lacks the fullness and richness and vitality it deserves, playing with a hint of reservation or shyness. Still, clarity and attention to detail impress, as does the mostly full stage spacing and immersion. More, the track finds a fairly convincing and pleasing low end support that gives a weighty texture to the music without overpowering it. The track features a fairly enveloping city din ambience that defines many exterior locations and helps pull the listener into the film. Dialogue delivery is crisp and smooth, a touch shallow in a couple of spots but generally firm and fixed in the center. There is a healthy, realistic reverberation in the Guggenheim sequence in chapter 11. Annie doesn't push sound systems to their limits, but it produces a largely satisfying, if not fairly straightforward, listening experience.

Annie Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Annie contains a nice little array of bonuses that should please adults and children alike. Inside the Blu-ray case, buyers will find a DVD copy of the film and a voucher for a UV digital copy.

• Audio Commentary: Director Will Gluck discusses a number of basic details, including cast and performances, shooting locales and sets, homages to the original, music, technical details of the shoot, stylistic choices, cameos, digital post work, and more.
• Deleted Song (1080p, 2:35): Something Was Missing.
• Bloopers (1080p, 3:27).
• Sing Alongs (1080p): Sing-along and Karaoke-style versions of Hard Knock Life (3:05), Tomorrow (2:34), I Think I'm Gonna Like it Here (3:24), Opportunity (2:39), and I Don't Need Anything But You (2:44).
• A Day on the Set with Quvenzhané (1080p, 6:20): A look at the young actress' long days on the set, including time in the makeup chair, rehearsals, working with Director Will Gluck, shooting scenes, acting alongside her co-stars, and going to school on-set.
• It's a Hard Knock Camp: Auditions and Training (1080p, 11:21): Casting "regular kids" in the roles around Annie, making some of the song-and-dance numbers, rehearsals, the girls' camaraderie, and the characteristics they all brought to the film.
• Fun with Sandy (1080p, 2:20): A quick and humorous behind-the-scenes look at work with the film's dog.
• Moonquake Lake, On Set! (1080p, 11:21): Chris Miller and Phil Lord sit down for a fake interview about the fake movie seen in Annie.
• The Making of Annie (1080p, 14:34): A basic back-patting overview piece that looks at updating the story to modern times, the universal story and themes that run through both films, new songs in this version, casting and performances, character arcs, Will Gluck's direction, shooting in New York, and more.
• Music Video (1080p, 3:26): You're Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile.
• Music Video (1080i, 2:32): Tomorrow Around the World: Clips of the song performed in different languages.
• Annie Trivia Track: Factoids presented on-screen while the film plays.
• Photo Gallery (1080p).
• Previews: Additional Sony titles.

Annie Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Annie may not be the single worst remake out there, but it's a far cry from the original's charm and grace. The film, even as it carries much the same tune with an updated rhythm, feels perpetually empty and lifeless. The film enjoys few bright spots -- Quvenzhané Wallis being the most obvious -- and feels otherwise off-balance and uncertain in pacing, structure, theme, and surrounding performances beyond Wallis and Byrne. An interesting side note: both this Annie and the 1982 version were nominated for Golden Globes and Razzie awards alike. Sony's Blu-ray release of Annie yields solid video and audio. A healthy allotment of extras are included. Rent it.