'Birdman' (15)

****

In an attempt to reinvent himself and escape of a past superhero role, Riggan Thomas chooses to adapt, direct and star in Raymond Carver’s ‘What We Talk About When We Talk About Love’. Birdman, however, will not let him go and, alongside last-minute casting changes and difficult personal relationships, Riggan struggles to maintain his sanity.

For the first twenty minutes or so, I really struggled with this film: I found the constant tracking-shots alienating, the strange drumbeat annoying, and the characters vapid and infuriating. It was all over the place, and I seriously considered getting up and leaving. However, something happened – I couldn’t specify exactly what it was that made me remain in my seat, but I allowed myself to be swept along in the oddity of it all. And odd it most certainly is – the film appears to have been shot in one long sequence, with the camera following the characters along the passages of the theatre, into their dressing rooms and out into the street with incredible fluidity. Sometimes the camera becomes the point of view of the character, and at other times it is so close into the face of the actors that they almost take up the entire frame. To start with, this was incredibly annoying, and it almost made me feel a little seasick, but later I thought that it was really inventive and a very interesting way of filming the inner workings of the theatre.

At the centre of the film, however, is Michael Keaton’s brave and stripped-down performance as Riggan Thomas. A man desperate to escape the shadow of his superhero role, Birdman, Riggan is determined to show the world that he is a ‘serious actor’. Keaton is excellent – stoic, comic and engaging throughout, and unashamed to have the camera close to his face throughout. Alongside Keaton is Edward Norton, playing Mike, an actor apparently searching for ‘the truth’ but who is in fact more interested in fooling around with Riggan’s drug-addict daughter, Sam (Emma Stone). Norton’s performance was my favourite and even though he played a wholly despicable human being, I missed his presence when he wasn’t on screen. Naomi Watts, Andrea Riseborough and Amy Ryan are similarly excellent in their supporting roles, all battling with their own demons. Also, Lindsay Duncan is amazing and should definitely be in more films.

I can’t say that all the quirks worked for me, however. The abstract drumroll was at times distracting as you couldn’t help but notice it as it was so disjointed and apparently devoid of any rhythm. Andrea Riseborough is sinfully underused and I couldn’t help feeling that it was perhaps a little too long, but when I come to think back on the film now, I can’t imagine which bits I would take out to shorten the overall runtime.

Ambitious, bizzare in every sense of the word and featuring some great performances from Michael Keaton and Edward Norton, Birdman is a film that will undoubtedly polarise audiences. The artistry is undeniable and the ending so ambiguous that it had to be nominated for Best Picture, and whilst it may not be perfect, the sheer scope is something to behold in itself.