Annette (2021)

Review

141min

Genre:       Drama, Musical, Romance

Director:     Leos Carax

Cast:         Adam Driver, Marion Cotillard, Simon Helberg…and more

Writers:     Ron Mael and Russell Mael

-Synopsis-

A mysterious musical chronicle of the relationship between an intense and troubled stand-up comedian and a celebrated opera singer, whose glamorous lives are turned upside down by the arrival of an exceptional baby daughter with a gift to share with the world, as this young family in the spotlight heads towards a downfall.

Having flirted with narrative musicals throughout their long recording careers and writing one which never made the stage but hit the airwaves and record players in the form of ‘The Seduction of Ingmar Bergman’, the Mael brothers of legendary experimental American pop/rock duo ‘Sparks’ reunite with French surrealist romantic director Leos Carax—after providing him one of their songs for 2012’s ‘Holy Motors’—entrusting him to bring visual and emotive life to their unconventional musical concoction and rhythmic meditation on fame, excellence, and familial turmoil.

Adam Driver stars as bitter and combative stand-up comedy star ‘Henry’, in the throes of a whirlwind romance with luminous and beloved opera star ‘Ann’ (Marion Cotillard), which soon turns into a high-profile courtship which brings baby ‘Annette’ into the world—a curious child with a spellbinding artistic gift. But this toddler’s talents soon become both a poignant escape and a meal ticket when her parents’ marriage hits the rocks hard, and Henry co-opts Ann’s conductor and piano ‘Accompanist’ (Simon Helberg) to bring her gift to the masses—as the failing comic’s self-centred world begins to crumble . . . with grave consequences for those around him.

Right from the start when the up-tempo beat of Ron Mael’s piano starts to ring and the piercing upward inflection of Russell’s vocals kick in, you know it’s time to get this idiosyncratic party started, but this is a party which steadily goes off the deep end, with a tone which grows increasingly dark and melancholy as it chugs along. It’s also clear early on that this is going to be a weird and unconventional musical, not just from some of its aesthetic choices and narrative path, but also in the choice of its stars.

Rather than an experienced pair of singers for the film’s leads, Carax’s choice of Marion Cottillard and Adam Driver shows faith in two exceedingly skilled screen performers, who are clearly not natural vocalists but are unafraid of, or better yet willing to rise to any acting challenge. With the former having gone from comedy crime capers and poignant French dramas to mind-bending Hollywood blockbusters and even tackling Shakespeare in her second language, before becoming a late replacement here. Meanwhile Driver continues to impress in a journey which has taken him from edgy HBO sitcoms to a galaxy far, far away—taking daring detours to command the screen for the likes of Jim Jarmusch, Noah Baumbach, Spike Lee and Martin Scorsese along the way.

Much like its creators, ‘Annette’ is well-dressed and certainly looks the part, with Cottillard in particular as the glamorous soprano showcasing an array of costume designs ranging from the retrained and functional to the ostentatious, meanwhile the film’s overall aesthetic blends clean abstract ethos with a modernist urban fairy tale style befitting a largely European production filmed in the continent, as well as in contemporary Los Angeles where it’s actually set.

The film’s most memorable stylistic element though must be the curious decision to use elaborate puppets rather than real babies and toddlers (or CGI) for the titular ‘Annette’ role, resulting in a young character that comes off borderline creepy and unintentionally comical at times, yet clearly artificial enough to avoid the ‘uncanny valley’ effect and no doubt a logistical decision—which is nevertheless spun into a Pinocchio-esque narrative choice in the final scene.

Of course as a musical, even an unorthodox one, how it sounds should be even more important that what it looks like, and there’s no denying the prowess of its composers through the decades, nor can you argue with the instant toe-tapping catchiness of the opening number “So May We Start”. But what follows in terms of the music and the arrangements isn’t particularly memorable, nor does really capture the imagination or touch the heart even with its poignant and emotive signature stylee “We Love Each Other So Much”.

Meanwhile the lyrical content which drives the entire story isn’t much more impressive, proving neither particularly sophisticated or profound nor catchy or delightful enough to completely capture the audience’s attention, leaving Cottillard and Driver to do some heavy lifting to just about make the narrative singing work with simple but effective harmonisations, while shining slightly more with the bigger marquee numbers.

Ultimately ‘Annette’ shows glimpses of Carax’s romantic surrealism and some of his penchant for fantasy realism, but despite its slightly unorthodox nature as a screen musical ‘Annette’ is not near as odd and quirky as we might have expected, particularly for a Leos Carax film and a ‘Sparks’ concoction. It’s also not nearly bold or creative enough to avoid the struggle with keeping the audience entertained or engrossed for periods at a time. And while it certainly looks the part, it lacks the lyrical intricacy to keep the story ticking over seamlessly or make the twists and turns it does make really hit home, ultimately relying heavily on the musicality of the Mael Brothers’ score and the magnetism of its two leads to provide some energy and sell the story.

In the end this experiment just lacks some of the heart or soul that make musicals in the 21^st century a worthwhile endeavour, even despite genre’s apparent resurgence or attempts to re-invent it—leaving us with the impression that in the spirit of its enchanting soprano Ann, this might have worked better as an opera.

The Bottom Line…

A rhythmic scattershot fever dream, or rather nightmare, which sits uncomfortably between an emotionally flat dysfunctional family drama and a dark new age performance art piece—which makes a half-hearted effort at a meditation on fame, self-centredness and exploitation—ultimately staying afloat (unlike some of its characters) by the allure of its charismatic leads and a score which despite its shortcomings is still a ‘Sparks’ piece . . . and that’s always got to count for something.

Similar films you may like (Home Video)

La La Land (2016)

Writer/director Damien Chazelle (Whiplash) takes his Jazz sensibilities to Tinseltown in an all-singing, all-dancing musical dramedy, starring Ryan Gosling as a jazz musician who falls for Emma Stone’s aspiring young actress in L.A. in this modern interpretation of a “Golden Age” Hollywood genre staple, for both new and old generation alike.

Directed by Damien Chazelle and starring Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone and John Legend among others.

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