Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Mild
- Complexity
- Simple
- Violence
- None
- uplifting
- sentimental
- witty
- family movie night
- musical movie marathon
What critics said
Critics broadly found the likable cast and buoyant musical energy overwhelmed by clichés, cloying sentimentality, commercialism, and weak execution.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The classic Annie premise is reworked around a Harlem foster child, a cell-phone mogul, and a mayoral campaign.
Will Stacks initially brings Annie into his home as a campaign-oriented public-relations gesture and good-luck charm.
The Broadway musical is updated through contemporary songs, choreography, celebrity performers, and a cell-phone-business setting.
Stacks moves from calculating mayoral candidate to a more personally invested guardian figure through his relationship with Annie.
Films like Annie, and why
Matilda
family-friendly musical comedy blending a child protagonist, adult transformation, colorful songs, and an uplifting found-family arc
The Greatest Showman
modernized family musical with a spirited young heroine, comic adult antagonists, and themes of belonging and resilience
Oliver!
warm ensemble musical centered on an orphaned child whose optimism changes emotionally guarded adults
The Game Plan
contemporary family comedy about an unconventional child reshaping the life of a wealthy or powerful adult
Movie Details
- Director
- Will Gluck
- Release Date
- 2014-12-18
- Runtime
- 118 min
- Rating
- 6.2 / 10 (1384)
Cast
- Quvenzhané Wallis
- Jamie Foxx
- Rose Byrne
- Cameron Diaz
- Bobby Cannavale
- Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje
- David Zayas
- Amanda Troya
- Zoe Colletti
- Nicolette Pierini
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Netflix
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand, Plex
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Annie about?
- A resilient Harlem foster child turns a billionaire’s cynical mayoral campaign into an unexpected lesson in family, hope, and emotional responsibility.
- What is Annie like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Annie as brisk, its intensity as mild and its storytelling as simple.
- Is Annie violent?
- No — Ember's analysis finds no violence in Annie.
- What did critics think of Annie?
- Critics broadly found the likable cast and buoyant musical energy overwhelmed by clichés, cloying sentimentality, commercialism, and weak execution.
- Which films are like Annie?
- Films with a similar feel include Matilda, The Greatest Showman, Oliver!, and The Game Plan.
- How long is Annie?
- Annie runs 118 minutes.
- Where can I watch Annie?
- In United States, Annie streams on Netflix.
