BIRDMAN MOTHERFUCKAS (2014 film feat. Michael Keaton, Edward Norton, Emma Stone, et al)

The closest Birdman comes to an American Beauty moment is ...

http://media.giphy.com/media/Ya6TjOP90uoJa/giphy.gif

"big statement" in Academy terms = jampacked w references to contemporary cultural flashpoints

Big Statement in Academy terms = an actress' breasts.

prosthetic noses also acceptable

You mock noses.

A nose by any other name

we should poll Academy-approved prosthetic noses - Monster, The Hours, Birdman, Foxcatcher. Raging Bull would win I suppose

wizard of oz

just green makeup for original witch nvm

but def lion and tin man. guess witch nose prosthetic was fostered by disney cartoons.

The ending was a bit twee

Except... He probably actually killed himself. At least that's how I read it.

― the joke should be over once the kid is eaten. (chap), Monday, January 26, 2015 4:16 AM (1 month ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

chap otm

That would explain his daughter's relief in the last shot.

there's no read of the ending that makes sense

Thought that was film giving us the birdman we crave, though he is actually dead.

he died on stage. Everything after is terrible fake ending.

He was actually just window washing naked

You wish he window washed naked bc that is a famous scene from birdman 2

Two titles for two movies. One instinctively wants it to be birdman 4 while watching, which is sad bc that instinct is the impetus for the tragedy unfolding in the true story of birdman.

Cool movie, amazing soundtrack, surprised it took so long before somebody on a rooftop looked out at New York and proclaimed "God I love this city".

But yeah he didn't kill himself at the end. Or if we are going to say he did kill himself I'm pretty sure it was when he jumped off the building the day before.

iirc the line was "I loathe this city."

Lol was gonna say

Still cliche, just with a cynical tint to it. Actually that kind of describes this whole movie. Most of the characters felt like very broad stereotypes, and it wouldn't work nearly as well if the technical aspects weren't all just locked in to be nearly PERFECT. If I was teaching a film class this would be a perfect movie to bring out.

It's funny but in a way it's just as comic booky as the comic book movies that are the villains of this film.

But yeah he didn't kill himself at the end. Or if we are going to say he did kill himself I'm pretty sure it was when he jumped off the building the day before.

every other instance of his "powers" in the film are shown to be either unreal or otherwise in his mind (incl when he jumps off the building the day before - when he walks back into the theater he's being badgered by a cabbie for the fare), why would the end be any different

it could be a 'feelgood' cheat like that pisspoor climax of Being There where Sellers walks on water.

yeah - and the only real clue there is his daughter's expression. although maybe she is just glad he's dead.

altho tbf I like the ending of Being There

the most notable thing about this film was Norton playing the essence of every "Norton is an asshole to work with" story from the last 20 years.

that was certainly the most enjoyable thing about it

The movie goes downhill after his and Keaton's first moment onstage.

Finally saw this last night, super fun. Sure it's showoffy, but it's hard for me to believe that anyone interested in film wouldn't enjoy just the physical mechanics of its construction (tracking shot, drum score, jittery dialogue etc. etc.) Man there are some grumpy snobs upthread.

I'm a cheerful snob.

if you don't mind that what's under the showboating is repulsive

I feel bad for them.

we're practically like CRITICS, applying LABELS

citrics

fuck critics

if you want a good review

it took 4 writers to simulate the howling self-absorption of Paddy Chayefsky gone New Age.

― touch of a love-starved cobra (Dr Morbius), Sunday, February 22, 2015 8:05 PM (1 month ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Haha, yes! Finally watched this, and thought of Network several times throughout--not a good thing.

it held it together tonally far better than network imo but the good things abt network are in the mix, def

no no

this was a well made, generally overacted, dumb movie (and likely bad too but i was distracted by how well it was made)

Network had imagination to it.

Network and Birdman both have crushingly obvious things to say about Society, and want congratulations for their profundity in pointing them out. Big shock that the Academy loved both of them, though I imagine that it was Birdman's praising of the nobility of the Hollywood actor that actually got it the Best Pic award.

p much. this movie = http://cinemajaw.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/jon-lovitz-acting.jpg

The movie was not praising these delusional losers I didn't think

I was pretty buzzed coming out of this mostly cause of the showier formal elements like the drumming & fake single shot. A virtuosic movie about failed would-be virtuosi, the pictures of fidelman of film. Even tho the critic scene was fucking stupid as was at least one of the superfluous endings.

Anyway then I thought about if some more and it has not aged well in my head at all

The movie was not praising these delusional losers I didn't think

it's not so much that the movie is praising the delusional losers as the Academy was patting itself on the back for being self-aware enough to acknowledge the delusional losers in their midst (aren't they so clever and grown up - they "get it")

Yeah that's more like it, Hollywood navel-gazing does tend to do well at Hollywood navel-gazing ceremonies but what rational person pays the slightest attention to those anyway

zactly

I'm not telling anyone what I thought about what the academy thought of this, thats p much three levels beyond how I grade movies