Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)

It is Oscar season, meaning every second film hitting cinemas has its eyes on one of those shiny little men.  One of this years front contenders comes in the form of Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance), directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu and starring Michael Keaton in a role that in many ways mirrors his real life career.

Riggan Thomson (Keaton) is a washed up Hollywood actor, most famous for his starring role in superhero movie Birdman.  His career took a downturn after he rejected a role in the fourth installment, because of his wish to pursue a career as a serious actor.  However, 20 years on, he is still clinging to that hope.  His latest attempt to leave the shadow of Birdman behind is with an adaptation of Raymond Carver’s short story, What We Talk About When We Talk About Love, which he has written, directed and stars in.  Unfortunately, it isn’t as simple as that, as he has to deal with eccentric actors (Edward Norton), a daughter who has recently left rehab (Emma Stone) and the fact that Birdman’s shadow stretches further than his career, as his shadowy figure continues to haunt him, whispering in his ear and seemingly convincing him he has psychic powers.

Filmed in such a way so as it seems the movie was done in one long tracking shot, Birdman looks amazing.  It brings you into the life of these characters and you find yourself caught up in their twisted and  mentally fragile world.  It is a filming technique that could have backfired horribly, but instead brings this film to life, bringing a whole new dimension to the way we see them.  Elsewhere, the soundtrack keeps you on edge.  It is a drum heavy, jazz influenced score and it runs all the way through the film, constantly giving you the feeling that you are on the edge of a precipice, teetering on falling in, a feeling that very much vibes with Thomson’s mental space.

Talking about Thomson, this performance may go down as career defining in the life of Michael Keaton.  He may have started doing this acting business a long time ago, but he has never been as good as this.  He enters the mind of Thomson and brings a slab of it to your attention.  You really believe he is crazy and as he falls deeper and deeper into the rabbit hole, it is hard not to go along for the ride.  He is not alone in putting on a great show however, Norton is his usual brilliant self, as popular Broadway actor Mike Shiner, the man looking to bring a bit of credibility to the play, but also bringing his own unique eccentricities.  Moments like him drinking real gin on stage and bursting out from a bed with a full-blown erection, provide genuine comedy in a film that has quite a bit of it, even as it embraces its darkness.  In any other film Norton would do a great job of stealing nearly every scene he is in, yet here is prevented from doing so by the brilliance of others.

It’s not only the central cast who come into this strong though, with Amy Ryan putting in a touching performance as Thomson’s ex-wife Sylvia.  While Emma Stone does more with her role than you might expect, seeing as the writing very rarely moves beyond your standard ex drug addict daughter.  Even with that issues, she has some touching exchanges with her father and her interactions with Norton are not quite as annoying as you might expect.  Lindsay Duncan’s short appearance as theatre critic Tabatha Dickinson, who apparently has the ability to close any film on Broadway with a bad review, is truly evil and made even me wish critics would just roll over and die.

Birdman is brilliant.  It is as simple as that really.  It is a fascinating dive into the mind of an insane man and it gets so many things, so right, that it is hard to imagine a movie coming out this year that is better.  Whether it is the superb performances, the gripping cinematography or the engaging soundtrack, there isn’t much that Birdman doesn’t do well and if 2015 throws up many films better or as good as this, it will be one hell of a year for cinema.