it's great and pompous
yes, and it's a celebration of pomposity
not as funny or good as either Black Swan or Maskerade though
― let no-one live rent free in your butt (sic), Tuesday, 15 September 2015 20:52 (eight years ago) link
I just finished watching it. First impressions:
It was ridiculous without being funny. It tried to play both sides of the street at once and failed as both a drama and a comedy. It did succeed in being pretentious.
It was reasonably accurate in its satire of theater people, but theater are not only an easy target, but their personal inadequacies are irrelevant to what makes the theater worthwhile, so who cares?
The only actor who figured out how to rise above his role as it was written was Ed Norton. The rest of the cast dutifully delivered the caricatures that the script demanded.
― Aimless, Wednesday, 16 September 2015 05:32 (eight years ago) link
I didn't enjoy that review
― deejerk reactions (darraghmac), Wednesday, 16 September 2015 06:39 (eight years ago) link
I enjoyed this film quite a bit. Not sure I'd watch it again, though.
― Hey Bob (Scik Mouthy), Wednesday, 16 September 2015 09:43 (eight years ago) link
i watched this for the first time last night, the 4th movie i'd watched during an 11-flight, and i was mesmerized. i thought the first 30-minutes or so in particular were really good. i was really surprised that someone upthread walked out after that, but i guess if you're not into birdman after the first half an hour you might as well go grab a taco or whatever. hard to believe all the hate in this thread but i guess i was just more pulled in by its technical achievements. on reflection, the script was sometimes weak but the performances and the way it was shot are so good that they could be reading dog food ingredients and it would still be pretty good. the plot is sometimes a little silly, but everything dips into the surreal so that seems natural. i can understand why some would recoil at its pretensions but it also introduces bob sagat and then kills him off within a minute, as michael keaton admits to the murder while walking back to his dressing room. it's not exactly people whispering in a t malick movie (which i also enjoy fwiw)
anyway, 2 jet-lagged thumbs up, way up
― I look forward to hearing from you shortly, (Karl Malone), Thursday, 14 July 2016 20:16 (seven years ago) link
otm otm otm
― poor fiddy-less albion (darraghmac), Thursday, 14 July 2016 20:57 (seven years ago) link
Thought this was okay. Sat down wanting to be completely drawn into and absorbed in a film after kind of a stressful/distracting day. If it never really got me there, I never wanted to turn it off either. Some nice images, some nice scenes, Keaton was fantastic but it didn't add up too much and the ending felt underthought even before found out it was kind of a late addition. I think the hype, awards, and budget do it a disservice - this is a minor, semi-weird, doesn't-quite-work film and that's not a bad thing, but pumped up to masterpiece status it inevitably feels like the emperor with no clothes.
The thing I come back to is Norton telling Keaton his script has him saying the same thing four times without being sure what the line's really about, and then we have this film where characters say and do the same things over and over. Not sure what to take away from it but it's surely intentional and I think a version shot in flat black and white - or a stage play version - it'd start to feel much more clearly like some kinda Waiting For Godot thing, with Actors wanderiing around repeating hollow dialogue that's meant to come off as discomfitingly detached from normal human behavior etc. Not saying it should have been that, mind.
― tales of a scorched-earth nothing (Doctor Casino), Thursday, 23 February 2017 15:19 (seven years ago) link
The Birdman voice was hilarious though. You could tell he really got into the spirit of the schlocky cliche of the comic book split personality - he sounds like Bale's Batman more than his own but the best lines all sounded like they came straight from such classic garbage stories as the Invisible Woman battling her S&M alter-ego Malice, etc.
― tales of a scorched-earth nothing (Doctor Casino), Thursday, 23 February 2017 15:23 (seven years ago) link
Best movie I feel like arguing with anyone who says otherwise
― quet inn tarnation (darraghmac), Saturday, 17 June 2017 11:41 (six years ago) link
It's shallow, showy guff.
― glumdalclitch, Saturday, 17 June 2017 11:49 (six years ago) link
Makes a point of it in fact
― quet inn tarnation (darraghmac), Saturday, 17 June 2017 12:07 (six years ago) link
It makes a point of being guff?
― glumdalclitch, Saturday, 17 June 2017 12:08 (six years ago) link
I'm possibly enjoying it on a shallower level, or maybe a deeper one, idk.
Criticism based on relative perspective totally invalid if the piece works consistently from either obv
― quet inn tarnation (darraghmac), Saturday, 17 June 2017 12:16 (six years ago) link
Inarittu is probably the worst thing that has happened to film in the last twenty years.
― Frederik B, Saturday, 17 June 2017 14:19 (six years ago) link
Fred not entirely offbase
― Supercreditor (Dr Morbius), Saturday, 17 June 2017 14:30 (six years ago) link
Sonsabitches have sent in the big guns huh
― quet inn tarnation (darraghmac), Saturday, 17 June 2017 14:34 (six years ago) link
so how about you tell us what you think is so great about this movie, then we can knock down all your points?
― A is for (Aimless), Saturday, 17 June 2017 17:35 (six years ago) link
Xp
Renowned film critics
― i n f i n i t y (∞), Saturday, 17 June 2017 17:37 (six years ago) link
keaton was amazing otherwise this movie sucked
― marcos, Saturday, 17 June 2017 17:43 (six years ago) link
Norton was my pick
― the Rain Man of nationalism. (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Saturday, 17 June 2017 18:06 (six years ago) link
To aimless- it worked. But what it aimed for and was funny and touching while not being overly kind on any of its idiot characters.
Norton also my pick
― quet inn tarnation (darraghmac), Saturday, 17 June 2017 18:41 (six years ago) link
Did he come up with that thing where the camera slows down and circles around during action sequences and then speeds up? Did he do the "Last Resort" video?
― Eazy, Saturday, 17 June 2017 19:00 (six years ago) link
just gonna
Iñárritu
carry on
― more like matthew badlose (wins), Saturday, 17 June 2017 19:14 (six years ago) link
'Iñárritu' is probably the worst thing that has happened to film critics in the last twenty years.
― Frederik B, Saturday, 17 June 2017 19:43 (six years ago) link
Don't see u throwing many fadas my way man but u do u xp
― quet inn tarnation (darraghmac), Saturday, 17 June 2017 19:43 (six years ago) link