This film was very weird. I usually like weird. I prefer weird. But this weirdness wasn't backed up by anything other than a solid Adam Driver acting performance (he's not a singer!) and good cinematography. Usually, when you have nothing good to say, you can always say, "Good production values." which this film had.
First of all, it was supposed to be a musical. Adam Driver is a fabulous actor, but certainly not a singer. He can carry a tune. I don't know if Marion Cotillard sang her own songs, but whosever voice it was, was good.
The music by the brother duo Sparks was awful. No, I don't know anything else by Sparks, and based on this soundtrack I think I'm fortunate. The lyrics were banal. The opening song "So may we start" had that as most of the lyrics for the choruses. "So may we start." Yeah, that's about it. Totally forgettable. The other songs, save one by Marion, were forgettable.
The story itself is a common story. Boy from the wrong side of the tracks falls in love with a girl from the right side of the tracks. Will they survive their differences? Spoiler alert: They don't.
They have a baby, name her Annette, but....wait for it....she's a wooden puppet. So are we watching Pinocchio now? And the puppet ... wait for it... looks like an Ape. Yes, an ape. Big ears, ape features. Why? Well, the boy does a rude comedy act called "The Ape of God". OK. And yes, there are bananas and other ape references throughout this mess of a film.
At the end of Act II, something happens, that you kind of expect to happen. I enjoyed the cinematography of that scene, but you knew what was coming.
The third Act is all about Annette for a while - yes the puppet can sing. Well, vocalise to be more precise. And float. She becomes a world-wide sensation. Ah, now I understand. The daughter is being used as a puppet by the father. OK.
Too many plot holes. Too many good opportunities introduced and never used.
Simon Helberg (from Big Bang Theory) does a nice part as the accompanist/conductor. But he doesn't have a name in the film. He's even credited as "The Accompanist."
I can't understand how this was chosen for Cannes, other than it being very weird and people didn't want to call it out for the lack of anything else.
Again, Adam Driver was fabulous, bringing all kinds of depth to his character, but even within that depth and range, it's still one-dimensional.
I kept thinking that Baz Luhrman's Moulin Rouge was weird and was fabulous. Luc Besson's The Fifth Element was weird and was fabulous. Annette was just weird.
First of all, it was supposed to be a musical. Adam Driver is a fabulous actor, but certainly not a singer. He can carry a tune. I don't know if Marion Cotillard sang her own songs, but whosever voice it was, was good.
The music by the brother duo Sparks was awful. No, I don't know anything else by Sparks, and based on this soundtrack I think I'm fortunate. The lyrics were banal. The opening song "So may we start" had that as most of the lyrics for the choruses. "So may we start." Yeah, that's about it. Totally forgettable. The other songs, save one by Marion, were forgettable.
The story itself is a common story. Boy from the wrong side of the tracks falls in love with a girl from the right side of the tracks. Will they survive their differences? Spoiler alert: They don't.
They have a baby, name her Annette, but....wait for it....she's a wooden puppet. So are we watching Pinocchio now? And the puppet ... wait for it... looks like an Ape. Yes, an ape. Big ears, ape features. Why? Well, the boy does a rude comedy act called "The Ape of God". OK. And yes, there are bananas and other ape references throughout this mess of a film.
At the end of Act II, something happens, that you kind of expect to happen. I enjoyed the cinematography of that scene, but you knew what was coming.
The third Act is all about Annette for a while - yes the puppet can sing. Well, vocalise to be more precise. And float. She becomes a world-wide sensation. Ah, now I understand. The daughter is being used as a puppet by the father. OK.
Too many plot holes. Too many good opportunities introduced and never used.
Simon Helberg (from Big Bang Theory) does a nice part as the accompanist/conductor. But he doesn't have a name in the film. He's even credited as "The Accompanist."
I can't understand how this was chosen for Cannes, other than it being very weird and people didn't want to call it out for the lack of anything else.
Again, Adam Driver was fabulous, bringing all kinds of depth to his character, but even within that depth and range, it's still one-dimensional.
I kept thinking that Baz Luhrman's Moulin Rouge was weird and was fabulous. Luc Besson's The Fifth Element was weird and was fabulous. Annette was just weird.