[Review] Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)
In my line of work, I hear of dozens of new films each week. On the one hand, it's great to have an insider, early look at a lot of the films coming out in the calendar year. On the other hand, it takes away from the intrigue and spectacle that films used to have before I decided to follow this career path. It's rare, but every once in awhile, a film will seemingly come out of nowhere and retrieve those lost feelings of awe and wonder. Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) was that film for me.
In saying that, I subconsciously set a high bar walking into my screening of the film. Considering the cast and crew (Babel and Amores Perros writer/director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, Michael Keaton, Edward Norton, Emma Stone, et al), how could I not? After a year full of festivals and amazing film premieres, would Birdman be able to rise above all of them and surpass my exceedingly high expectations? Spoiler alert: Yes and no.
[youtube id="xIxMMv_LD5Q"]
Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)
Director: Alejandro González Iñárritu
Rating: R
Release Date: October 24, 2014
Riggan Thomson (Michael Keaton) found success in the '90s portraying the superhero Birdman in a blockbuster franchise that is still remembered fondly to this day. Feeling artistically empty and desperate to affirm his talent as not only an actor but as an artist, Thomson is writing, directing, and starring in a Broadway play based on Raymond Chandler's short story, "What We Talk About When We Talk About Love." After the lead actor is viciously injured by a fallen stage light, Riggan implores his producer, Jake (Zach Galifianakis), to get Mike Shiner (Edward Norton), the most talented current Broadway actor. However, after Mike joins the cast, tensions rise between he and Riggan as control over the play ultimately falls out of Riggan's hands.
Through this, Riggan must also contend with the contentious relationship with his daughter, Sam (Emma Stone), a recovering addict fresh out of rehab, his relationship with girlfriend and co-star Lesley (Naomi Watts), the strong friendship with his ex-wife and Sam's mother, Sylvia (Amy Ryan), and a New York Times critic and close friend of Mike's who promises to bury the play in her review due to her perceptions of Riggan as a Hollywood hack simply extending his 15 minutes of fame. Of course, there's also Riggan's growing pangs of a midlife crisis breakdown and the eponymous Birdman manifesting itself within Riggan's psyche.
There are so many elements playing both in concert and conflicting one another in Birdman that it'll take multiple viewings to dissect and analyze the full depth of the film. For the sake of this review, I'll focus on the biggest and most apparent elements: the difference between theater and cinema and Birdman's attempt to create a dichotomy of the two and the dissection of art/entertainment. Birdman is screened to seem like it was all one long take with no edits (there are edits made through deception, i.e. dark shadows in corridors, etc.). This visual element gives the audience the notion that you are watching one long sprawling play about a cast of characters putting together a Broadway play. The characters themselves (both actors and supporting characters) always give off this notion of acting, creating the illusion that the characters are always "on stage," with lines delivered much like soliloquies found more within theater than in films.
The combination of the two may disarm viewers expecting a traditional film, and the effect may not carry the same esteem for everybody. Others may not like how much of the dialogue is delivered as if every actor had a spotlight shining on them as they stood upon a soap box and recounted personal, emotional stories about their characters. But for myself, somebody who has dedicated a growing number of years to analyzing and critiquing films, I absolutely loved Inarritu and cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki's approach to Birdman. I'm a sucker for film visionaries that aren't scared to experiment with their craft. What's more, I think they truly pulled off creating the idea of Birdman, the film, being representative of a film of a play presented as a play through film.
What's more, it's hard to ignore the metafictional crux of the film of Michael Keaton playing the lead role, given his memorable performances as Batman during the early '90s. Without his past, would a film like Birdman even exist to this level? Probably not. Keaton truly is the heart and soul of the film, and not only does he knock it out of the park, each and every supporting actor from Norton to Stone to Ryan to Galifianakis help ensure Birdman reaches the levels Inarritu intended when putting the film together. Hell, even the jazz-influenced drum score by Antonio Sanchez helped ratchet up the faux-appearance of tightly-written improvisation.
Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) was everything I wanted it to be and more. Even as I write this, I'm making plans to view it for a second time. As the awards season begins and many highly-regarded films will be released into theaters for Academy Award consideration, Birdman currently flies above the potential of any film scheduled for release through the end of the year. However, its experimental nature might not be for everyone, and while it may collect a multitude of critic awards and Top Ten list considerations, I'll be disappointed (but unsurprised) if it doesn't capture the amount of Oscar nominations it should. For the average weekend moviegoer, if you want to see some of the year's best cinematic performances and watch the vision of one of Hollywood's true visionaries, take it upon yourselves to find a theater that is screening Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance).
[Review] Neighbors
[This review was originally published as part of our SXSW 2014 coverage. It is being re-posted to coincide with Neighbors' theatrical release.]
[youtube id="wyH9PLLLPaw"]
Neighbors
Director: Nicholas Stoller
Rating: R
Release Date: March 8, 2014 (SXSW)
Nicholas Stoller has been making a name for himself in the comedy scene for years, writing and directing some decent comedies (Forgetting Sarah Marshall, The Five-Year Engagement). Neighbors, his most recent feature, takes some of the best parts of any Judd Apatow-related film, but adds in Stoller's own style that makes it one of 2014's best comedies of the year thus far.
Mac (Seth Rogen) and Kelly (Rose Byrne) are two young parents that move into a brand new neighborhood after putting their life savings into a house. Everything seems well and idyllic until a fraternity moves into the building right next door. Wanting to get on their good side, Mac and Kelly introduce themselves to the fraternity's two leads, Teddy (Zac Efron) and Pete (Dave Franco). After hitting things off well, the relationship between them quickly sours after Mac and Kelly call in a noise complaint. Feeling betrayed, the fraternity declare a war of pranks and shenanigans on the couple, creating chaos in an already chaotic life. With no real options left to them, Mac and Kelly must fight fire with fire to ensure they aren't displaced from their own neighborhood.
Neighbors takes a simple premise and runs with it to great comedic effect. What could have been nothing but a raunchy, lightweight comedy ended up being one of the year's early comedy hits. Considering the nature of the premise (fraternity vs. developmentally-arrested young parents), the raunch level was always going to be present. However, it's used in good taste and contextually well within the frameworks of the film. For example, most college-themed films like to include as many topless girls as possible to give off the "college" feeling. Neighbors, however, keeps the breasts to a bare minimum, only turning to them when appropriate or for a well-placed joke, essentially empowering the importance of bare breasts to great effect.
One major slight against Neighbors is a pacing problem. While the film starts off with some great jokes and keeps the momentum going, there's a noticeable section of the film where the jokes and setups are halted for an extended period of time. Within the context of the film, this was all meant to lead into the otherwise hilarious third act, which is understandable, but unfortunately too much of a lapse to easily brush aside. When the jokes are on, though, they're on, whether it's extended "Who's the real Batman?" exchange, dildo molding, or a long breast milk gag.
Everybody in the cast brought their A-game to Neighbors. Zac Efron's been on this high trajectory, and I was happy to see him get the chance to work alongside both Stoller and Rogen. Franco, too, needs more roles like his in Neighbors, not only because of his comedic prowess, but to also show what he can offer outside of older brother James' shadow. Of course, Byrne stole the show with her jokes. It just be the accent, but Byrne was on it for Neighbors, perhaps building off of the great chemistry she and Rogen shared.
Neighbors won't be out in domestic theaters until May 9th, and indeed, the SXSW cut of the film still was an unfinished one, needing some extra polish, sound mixing, and overall post-editing. Hopefully, the edits they make can help the aforementioned lull in pacing towards the end of the film, plus cutting a few jokes or two wouldn't be a bad idea (including a gruesomely unnecessary Obama joke that didn't land at all). However, despite the extra work that'll be made on the film, I still stand my ground by labeling Neighbors one of 2014's best comedy offerings.
[SXSW Review] Premature
[Ruby Hornet will be covering SXSW from March 7th to March 16th. Follow along as we bring you exclusive film reviews, photos, daily features, and interviews with filmmakers, actors, and musicians!]
[youtube id="zkyc97vmSlI"]
Premature
Director: Dan Beers
Rating: R
Release Date: March 7, 2014 (SXSW)
High school comedies have always followed the same basic formula: everyman protagonist, a group of friends, parties, sex, and shenanigans to bring everything together. Looking at the successes and failures of other high school comedies over the years, it takes more than just an outlandish premise and a talented cast - there needs to be that extra element that can help a film separate itself from its brethren. Does Premature possess that special touch that helps it be more than just "another high school comedy"? Read on and find out.
On the most important day of his young life, Rob (John Karna) has to ace an interview with a Georgetown recruiter, lose his virginity to one of the hottest girls in the school, Angela Yearwood (Carlson Young), and cap it all off with a night spent with his best friend, Gabrielle (Katie Findlay). However, the interview goes terribly, he cancels his plans with Gabrielle, and he prematurely ejaculates during his hook up with Angela. When he wakes up, he finds himself in a wet spot... at the beginning of the day. Before long, Rob realizes that he's stuck in a loop of the day's events until he can make them all right... or be forced to trigger the Groundhog Day events with his own hands. Pun intended.
Premature follows in a long line of high school comedies. However, the added time travel/Groundhog Day element adds a wrinkle to the film that not only becomes an essential plot device, but one that's inherently funny. Every time Rob ejaculates, the day resets. It's a blessing and a curse, this gift Rob has been granted from the gods. Of course, with a trigger such as this, it's hard not to let writer/director Dan Beers go full-on with it, allowing Premature to have fun while also steering the film from going too far off from the path. Unfortunately, I don't think Premature went as far as it could have with the ability to turn back time so easily. In saying that, for it to veer off into more outlandish situations would have alienated the tone of the film, so it's a mixed bag of sorts.
Premature is a fitting ode to Groundhog Day and John Hughes films (including a Glenbrook High School reference to Hughes' own alma mater, Glenbrook North), right down to the film's tone that leans more towards youthful naivety instead of raunchy sex shenanigans. However, I think this both helped and hurt Premature; I would have liked more risks to benefit more from the trigger plot device. While the jokes won't always hit, what will is the heart and character-focused priority over easy sex jokes typical of the high school comedy genre. If you're expecting Premature to be the next Superbad, your expectations aren't going to be met. Go into Premature expecting more John Hughes and less Judd Apatow, and I think you'll have a better reaction to the film.