Birdman: Wings Clipped

Birdman by Alejandro González Iñárritu is a tale of a washed up actor seeking redemption at the hands of the theatre community after previously starring in the wildly successful 'Birdman' trilogy. From the start right until the final credits the camera movement is nauseating and the scatty jazzy soundtrack borders on pretentious, which is plain irritating. This shamefully masks some fantastic acting from Michael Keaton, Edward Norton and Zach Galifianakis.

I thought I had daydreamed for a moment and thought I was watching a bizarre remake of the West Wing, with Keaton as the president. How the camera followed in front of Keaton as he walked down the halls of the theater (intentional or not) was very reminiscent of Sheen in the aforementioned show. The only time the camera seems to sit still is during the scenes set in Riggan's room at the theatre. It could symbolize the stability and calmness he feels when he is alone in his room (well apart from the Birdman of course!). 

The hint to Michael Keaton's caped past throughout this film is obvious, even down to the deep voice of the voice of Riggan's ego echoing Christian Bale in the Nolan adaptions. The diatribe towards audiences of the Superhero movie genre seems to come from jealousy rather than clever observation. Superhero movies are borne from illustrated novels mostly and are supposed to be action packed by definition right? All genres are plagued with hit and miss films, not just this particular area. Its worth having a thousand Green Lantern's if we still get a Dark Knight at the end.

Edward Norton is fantastic as the passionate, volatile Mike who is brought in at the last minute due to some terrible acting. His highlight is a smashing incident during one of the play's previews. Emma Stone is the daughter who's sass and apathy inevitably melt as she has a predictable Hallmark moment with her father. Her romance with Mike is very unrealistic like most romance in Hollywood, but adorable nonetheless and an essential part of the plot. Without all the little things building up and going against the protagonist like a game of Buckaroo, we wouldnt get how stressed Riggan is by everything going on and not going on in his life.

Despite all my angst when describing this film, there are some genuinely funny moments. The dressing gown episode that goes viral is genius. When Keaton's ego is rallying him during a great scene, he says "60 is the new 30 motherfucker". Not that nudity and profanity are the only things that float my boat, this is just coincidence.