Given that almost all the words were sung, I guess you could call Annette an opera. And I guess the music was (hopefully) purposefully written in a pentatonic scale, giving it an eeriness that can't be denied.
So once you accept that it's written on a 5 note scale it's easier to say that it is avant garde in that it is trying something new and was successful. Some of the harmonies were very nice. So I'm not going to quibble about the music.
But the lyrics were just boring and not very original. They did carry this film to its tragic end. But I would have appreciated it more if they expanded their vocabulary. Just because you are writing music on a 5 note scale, doesn't have to mean you have to have simplistic lyrics. Or maybe that was the point. It was meant to be simplistic. And that is either a success or failure depending on your taste.
So we get to the plot. And it was definitely a tragedy, but not very original. I've seen better ones on numerous streaming channels thees day. I mostly watched it for to see if it matched up to the hype.
I never found Adam Driver's jokes funny, so I was surprised at his success as a comedian. And while he doesn't have a great voice he was able to stay on pitch in some more complicated places. But of course these days, that can be altered somewhat in the sound editing.
I'm not sure about the symbolism of Annette being a wooden doll or puppet. I can only think this symbolized the lack of humanity Driver's character had and was passed on to his child. It is only when he meets his fate that she comes alive.
So I gave it a three stars. I longed for Rogers and Hammerstein, Sondheim, Andrew Lloyd Weber and even the Who's Tommy.
It's a shame that Marion Cotillard's beautiful voice was wasted on this film. Her singing was one of the best parts of the movie.