Assignment 16- Lucas Soard, Rotten Tomatoes

I reviewed Birdman, by Alejandro Gonzalez Inaritu (I don’t have a RT account)

No review of “Birdman” complete without first mentioning Michael Keaton. Keaton was, simply, brilliant. It’s easy to make connections between Riggan Thompson and the former star of Batman, and that was the first thing I noticed when I learned about the film last summer. It’s likely true that the biggest compliment any actor can receive is that the movie would be incomplete without their performance. Any other actor in this role would’ve made the film weaker. The wonderful thing about this film is that while it stars Keaton in what will likely be the defining role, the all-star class of actors in the film aren’t outshined. Ed Norton as the selfish and drunken Broadway actor, Emma Stone as the druggie daughter of success, and Zach Galifanakis as the worrisome and manic friend all turn in powerful performances that refuse to be forgotten.

But the real star of the film is director Alejandro G. Inaritu. Likely known only to frequenters of foreign film houses before this movie, Inaritu took an amazing risk during production. The dark reds and blacks that mark the cinematography match perfectly the mood of the film. The tracking shots ultimately win the day however. Every scene consists of a single tracking shot, shots that often required actors to learn upwards of 12 pages of dialogue. One friend of Inaritu’s offered that the film would be a failure, suggesting that the comedic timing of the script would be thrown off by the awkward direction (Keaton kept tabs on which actors made the most flubs, Emma Stone made the most, while Galifanakis made the fewest). These long shots make the viewer feel like they are watching the story unfold in a more personal way, often following characters from one room to another, from one interaction to another.

The film was both ambitious and brilliant. Ultimately, the casual viewer as well as the avid cinema junkie will leave the theater in awe. The actors deliver, and Inaritu’s bet paid off. The style is unmistakable, and the score matches perfectly with the cinematography, matching the script in every way.