Birdman

[Drunk Monk]

I know I've said I'm done with superhero flix, but then along comes Big Hero 6 & this.

Mark my words - this is an Oscar contender. It's a film about the art of acting, of broadway theater vs. blockbuster movies, of social media vs. relevance, of some big 'what's it all mean?' questions. The Academy loves that shit. It's a film that cinemaphiles can discuss at cocktail parties.

From a technical standpoint, the camerawork is fantastic. Anyone who's ever been behind a camera, Birdman is a staggering achievement (talking to y'all, Greg, cf & tg - you guys must really see this just for the camerawork). It's presented like one long continuous shot. It isn't that, of course - the choreography and cinematography is swirling and hectic and it would have been impossible to achieve what this film does that way. There are dark passages, mostly through doors, when the scene cuts are cleverly hidden. Watching so many fight scenes has me sensitized to challenge of long single shot scenes and Birdman is a stand out example of this style of filmmaking.

Also baiting the Academy, Birdman sets up long complex soliloquies for the actors to chew up scenes. Keaton hits it out of the ballpark with his self-referential, self-degrading, self satire. Norton dials in his inner prick, quite literally. Emma Stone, who has eyes the size of oranges, so big that anime characters are envious, delivered a fine performance that forces me to reassess my opinion of her. Galifinakis (sp?) is okay in a minor straight man supporting role but is way overshadowed by the rest of the cast. The film is funny, thought-provoking, dramatic and engaging.

No sword fights (but a funny wrasslin scene), no dance numbers, no dog and the set is the backstage of a theatre for the most part so I don't know if that counts. Nevertheless, Birdman gets extra credit for exploiting one of my fav elements that I don't always bring up because good examples are so rare - Birdman has excellent hallucination scenes. A good hallucination makes you question reality, makes you wonder where the line between real and surreal really might be, and Birdman nails that.

It's not a perfect film. It's long and very self-absorbed (another film about the process of acting? oh puh-leese...) It has an almost French film ending, but while this seldom works for me, it worked for me here. S was bothered that it didn't offer any answers to the philosophic questions. It just raises the questions and spins its wheels, but that's a philosophy major for you. That's a lot to expect from a film. But she's right (she always is :roll: ) - Birdman goes a lot of places, but in the end, it doesn't really get anywhere at all.

I'll be curious to read DOOM comments on it, as we're all cinemaphiles here after a fashion. Me personally, I'm more of a B-grade grindhouse cinemphile, as are many of you. Birdman is the sort of film that is fun to deconstruct.

[cranefly]

Lady Cranefly and I saw this last night.

I can't say it was an enjoyable film, but it piqued my interest throughout. I discovered myself growing a touch eye-fatigued at times, not wanting to miss a moment of the continuity with an eye-blink or a moment of daydreaming. It made me aware of how much of that I do when watching other films.

After the movie, LCF trolled the web and came back to ask me the question everyone is asking: "What do you think the ending meant?" I told her it meant that, in the original ending, the character in the final shot did just the opposite thing, but it didn't test well with the test audience, so the director reshot it as it currently stands.

LCF thought I was being a smart ass. But it wouldn't surprise me if that was the case.

I had a lot of trouble hearing some of the lines, especially when Keaton dips into soliloquy mode. I desperately wanted subtitles. It's always so frustrating when LCF laughs at some clever or funny exchange that I simply didn't catch.

All in all, though I didn't appreciate it as much as I hoped I would, I found it fully engaging, and respect it to a high degree, and am glad that such a movie can still sail forth from the Hollywood doldrums.

[Drunk Monk]

Season 10 Ep 4 "Charlie Work" of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia is almost entirely one continuous shot. The episode is crazy frantic but amazing camerawork and had me laughing out loud so hard. Haven't laughed that hard at a TV show in ages.

I that show. It's my guilty pleasure.

[Drunk Monk]

Mark my words - this is an Oscar contender.

Called it.

I'm really happy about his because our new IT at the office here fancies himself a cinephile because he can download pirated flix and he's been all gushing over how Boyhood was going to sweep, while I've been telling him Birdman all along. There are few things as satisfying at our age as putting a young'en in his place.

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

Lots of navel gazing. Lots of actors talking about the craft of acting. What's the real you! I'm only real on stage! Okay.

I guess I wanted it to be cleverer. Or maybe that's just the reaction to the gushing everyone has done about the film. Got to see them while they still seem fresh.

The ending kept going. I did see the dramatic stage moment coming a long way off. But I think they should have left it in the hospital bed.

I sort of liked it. It was technically a fine film with the camera work but the story in the heart wasn't all that great.

[El Dingo]

Not better than "The Grand Budapest Hotel". It was a gimmick movie with great acting, but did not have the emotional 'connect' I felt with the characters in Wes Anderson's masterpiece. Same with 'Boyhood'.

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

The Grand Budapest Hotel was far more entertaining and that mostly has to do with Ralph Fiennes.

[Drunk Monk]

DOOM is lagging. We should be smoking cigarettes and discussing this film over coffee at a French cafe.

Eh, actually, this is so last year...

[King Bob]

I thought it was overrated. It was such an obvious bid for an Oscar (although my wife raised the possibility that it is spoofing that, but I see no evidence for it). And I thought it should have ended a few minutes earlier, with the first flight scene. But I dug the crazy jazz soundtrack man.