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The first trailer for Birdman came out of nowhere last month and instantaneously wowed me and the majority of the film community. Co-written and directed by Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, the creative mind behind Amores perros, 21 Grams, and Babel, Birdman (or The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) stars Michael Keaton as Riggan Thomson, a washed up former superhero actor attempting to find success in his later life by writing and directing a play based on his experience. However, as can be seen in this new trailer, Riggan begins a mental downward spiral as the pressures of living up to his past success begin to get the better of him, possibly manifesting into the Birdman character serving as a negative conscience manipulating Riggan.
Fans of Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan will probably gravitate to Birdman, but with the added elements of dark comedy, a stellar cast that features Emma Stone, Edward Norton, Zach Galifianakis, Amy Ryan, and Naomi Watts alongside Keaton, and Inarritu’s proven filmography add up to Birdman easily becoming my most anticipated film of the year. Birdman (or The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) will be in theaters on October 17th.