BIRDMAN or THE UNEXPECTED VIRTUE OF IGNORANCE (2014) review: "To call myself beloved..."

"...to feel beloved on the Earth."

BIRDMAN or THE UNEXPECTED VIRTUE OF IGNORANCE is a 2014 (or 2015 if you live in the UK) film starring Michael Keaton, Zach Galifianakis, Edward Norton and several other great actors to long to list, as well as being written, produced and directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu. The film follows washed-up actor, Riggan Thomson (Michael Keaton) as he struggles to overcome and reclaim his past glory of playing an iconic superhero by mounting a Broadway play in attempts to resurrect his broken career.

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Michael Keaton stars as the infamous Birdman and is impeccable, Keaton really does shine in this film and easily demonstrates how much of an underutilised actor he is in terms of drama. How the story of the film seemingly blends quite nicely into Keaton's actual career makes you think that this role was tailor-made for him and he plays it to perfection, every time he's on screen he captivates you and he honestly sucks you in. I can't fault Keaton for what is perhaps an Oscar-worthy performance.

The rest of the cast, the aforementioned Zach Galifianakis, Edward Norton, Andrea Riseborough, Amy Ryan, Emma Stone and finally Naomi Watts are all here and giving great performances as you would expect, the reason I've bundled these cast members into one paragraph is that they are all equally as good as one another and there isn't a single weak performance throughout the entirety of the film. As per Edward Norton and Emma Stone, I find also quite fitting for the roles in this film as with Keaton, as they've both featured prominently within superhero films of their own such as The Incredible Hulk and The Amazing Spider-Man. I can't praise the performances of the supporting cast enough as they're all phenomenal and shine as much as Keaton does in terms of their said performances.

"How did we end up here?..."

The cinematography by Emmanuel Lubezki (who has previously worked on films such as Children of Men and Gravity) is also nothing short of astounding, with seamless tracking shots and an overall exceptionally colourful and eye-popping look to the film. The tracking shots in particular feel so smooth it is mind-blowing, as the whole film is cheated or made to look like it is one continuous shot and you honestly can't tell where the cuts are actually made. It's like the camera itself is a character constantly following these other characters around, observing their lives and experiences. It is a highly impressive technical feat that immersed me completely.

The writing by Alejandro González Iñárritu as well as Nicolás Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris, Jr. and Armando Bo follows suit as great, with nothing notable in terms of issues besides from the slightly odd and off-key lesbian romance between Watts' and Riseborough's characters which is lost throughout the film's layered story. It may be something that's subjective, but I felt that it was quite odd that it's created as a secondary plot point that is then left behind as the more prominent plot takes place. On that note, it could be intentional as a tying of the knot or end for those two characters to focus on the plot of the main character and how that is developing. The writing is most likely the weakest part of this film, but that isn't saying that it's anywhere near close to being bad.

The direction by Iñárritu fairs better and is honestly the best directing for the past few years, with the entirely fluid shots and equally as fluid performances that he has extracted out of each of these actors, I struggle to find words that could do justice to the directing talent that Iñárritu has. It's frankly amazing.

"We had it all. You were a movie star, remember?"

Finally, the film's score by Antonio Sánchez is a very quirky and jazzy score entirely composed of drums, which is something that is not often done within films, if at all. It makes a nice change of pace and fits with the film perfectly, escalating with Riggan's increasing desperation and schizophrenia as the film progresses and definitely highlights these moments of insanity as well as accompany the more down-to-earth scenes of backtalk between two characters to always give you something to listen to.

Overall, Birdman may just be my favourite film of 2014 (I would personally consider it a 2014 film because it was released first within 2014) because all of the pieces that bring a film together are all done masterfully well with only one or two very, very slight niggles that I had throughout that won't even affect most watching. It feels like a deeply personal film, rising from the ashes in attempts to rescue the career of a down-and-out actor. It is a seamless experience that doesn't hold out and keeps you pulled in until its end, even with its unconventional and loveably odd story as well as characters, it serves its purpose as a fantastical black comedy.

"Let's make a comeback."