After Babel and Biutiful, Alejandro Iñárritu is back with Birdman, or the Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance, and it’s a masterpiece! What’s better than a brilliant comeback story to make a brilliant comeback? Michael Keaton is back and he’s more amazing than ever. In Birdman, he is Riggan Thomson, a washed up actor who is mainly known for playing a superhero named Birdman. He tries to balance family and career while preparing for the opening of his new Broadway play.
While being loosely based on Keaton’s own life and relationship with the Batman franchise, Birdman is a rare and raw jewel, dealing most of all with actors and their relationship to criticism. In the last 15 years, Michael Keaton kind of went into oblivion, mainly by starring minor parts in mediocre movies – which is a shame if you ask me. He signed his rebirth with Birdman, showing a generation that may have forgotten him what an incredibly skilled actor he is.
Talking about skilled actors, I’ve rarely seen a cast so good. Each actor brings something to the table and no one is left behind, they mutually up their game, it’s quite wonderful to witness. Birdman is also the film that revealed the potential of some actors for me, especially Emma Stone and Zach Galifianakis. Even if I like Emma Stone, I’ve never particularly been impressed by her, and here, when her character gets angry at Michael Keaton, by the end I wanted to get up and clap. As for Galifianakis, I’m so used to see him playing complete idiots that I forgot that he was a damn good actor.
What makes the genius of Birdman is how it is brilliantly executed. From the music to the way it is shot, everything is just so well orchestrated. The music puts such a great rhythm to the film, there isn’t a moment where you can be bored, it’s non-stop moving. You can’t catch a break, and it feels great. The only thing that bothered me was the weirdly executed flying scene. Plus, this One-Shot illusion might just give Emmanuel Lubezki his second Oscar – He already won last year in the Best Cinematography category for Gravity.
The entire movie is made to look like its been shot in one continuous sequence. This shot creates a sense of proximity with the main character, the audience almost gets to see what’s inside his head. We know what he feels, discover his relationship with the Birdman character -whose voice he can hear – and we know about his abilities. We are alone with the character on many occasions as well, and ultimately while also being in the backstage of his play, we are in the backstage of his life. Riggan Thomson is such an interesting character, his search for recognition and approval, and his quest into proving to himself and others that he is worth something more than a franchise, is absolutely captivating.
I know I’m already rooting for too many actors in the Best Actor category, but I really wouldn’t mind if Keaton goes home with an Oscar, because it would be well deserved, and if we can have more speeches like the one he did at the Golden Globes, well I’m not saying no. I cannot recommend Birdman enough, just go and see it!
Rating : 4/5
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