Rent Annette (2021)

experimental, rich and satisfying - Annette review by MM

Well I've read the negative reviews and feel they are unfair. I'd agree that you have to get past the first few opening scenes, but I found this film very enjoyable in a pop-opera style. Those familiar to Sparks will know they are very accomplished lyricists and musicians. "we love each other so much' where the only line delivered is this line is try to their humour where rather than use lines of romantic dialogue or cheesy songs to describe character progression , they strip the song down to its function, that is to show us they love each other very so much. IF you understand what they are doing with the lyrics, you come to enjoy this approach as it really is innovative. I enjoyed the story and the unexpected move into death, supernatural revenge, is Macbethian. For me, it's one of the best films in the last year! Of course if you enjoy the music of Sparks this is a masterpiece.

Self indulgent and pretentious - Annette review by CW

This is one of the few films we decided not to watch to the end. We regularly list films given favourable reviews in the Times newspaper but this is our second recent mis-pick. I wondered whether this meant that we eldery film enthusiasts are out of touch with current life, but am reassured that we are not alone in giving up on this film. If it had been cut by one third of its length, it might have delivered a meaningful message about performance art.

Not my cup of tea - Annette review by Ernie

Sadly I can only say we gave up trying to watch this after 30 mins, I dont have a problem with musicals but without any dialog to give even a hint of what the film was about we could not keep watching.

No idea what to make of this - Annette review by DS

I have no idea whether this is supposed to be comedy, cute, or horror but am definitely coming down on the side of horror. It's plain weird and desperately creepy.

I've read a review which says it's a film that makes you understand why people hate musicals and I have to agree; this MAKES me hate musicals.

One of the most awful films i've seen in a long while

Weird, Pretentious Musical - Annette review by GI

This strange, surreal musical written by the Mael brothers, aka Sparks, has had a few plaudits especially as the director Leos Carax is much admired, but I found it an impenetrable, overly weird affair with songs that would be better applied to a concept album rather than a cinematic musical. Adam Driver is no doubt exceptional in his performance going from challenging stand up comedian to obsessed lover to controlling svengali in a story that, if you're like me, will have you pulling confused faces. He plays Henry, a performer whose career is on the wain, but who is in love with opera diva, Ann (Marion Cotillard), a much celebrated performer (so a bit of A Star Is Born narrative going on). They have a strange child together presented as an elf like marionette which they name Annette. When tragedy strikes Henry discovers the tiny Annette can sing like her adult mother and he devotes himself to her career, a path that leads to violence and destruction. All of this is presented in a nightmarish narrative with lyrically minimalist set of songs that are downright dull and watching Henry perform oral sex on Ann while singing 'we love each other so much' is, to be frank, odd. It's a film that I'm sure Film School students will rave about but for us mere mortals it's a pretentious load of tosh!