It was a Saturday night. I was (finally) sitting down to watch Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) — the auteuristic brainchild of Alejandro González Iñárritu. The film had a wide release last October but was still hard to track down in North Carolina theaters. So by the time the film had finished downloading, I was admittedly hyped based on all the great reviews and Oscar buzz the film had.
I must’ve been really exhausted that night, because I fell asleep halfway through the movie and woke up intermittently through the second half. The film is already surreal to begin with, so it made even less sense in the half-asleep half-awake Twilight Zone I found myself watching in. The film’s only two hours long, but from my perspective it felt like years. Not Boyhood years but real life years.
Maybe the couch was just really comfortable. I was curled up in a blanket with some of my favorite fluffy pillows. It would’ve been a really relaxing rest, actually, if it weren’t for Birdman blaring in the background. Maybe in the future our viewing experience will be able to account for an audience that falls asleep. Maybe horror movies will become self-aware and know when they’re not successfully scaring us. Maybe one will go rogue because it was programmed to scare anyone who watches it no matter what. Maybe.
A couple nights later, I sat down to watch the movie a second time and experienced no issues. I was awake and attentive the entire time and found the film to be a rewarding, unique cinematic experience with a clever script and talented performers. Must have just been a weird Saturday. After I finished watching Birdman, I had a bowl of store brand cereal and went to sleep. The cereal was a little more stale than I was hoping, but I powered through.
Fun fact for movie goers: Michael Keaton’s character in Birdman was inspired by another one of his famous roles. Can you guess which one? That’s right, it’s his role as President MacKenzie in 2004’s First Daughter.
The supporting cast does a really great job, too. I almost wrote “supporting cats.” I wonder if anyone involved in the production of 2001’s Cats & Dogs referred to the ancillary animal actors as “supporting cats.” I hope so. If anyone out there knows someone involved in the production of that almost 15-year-old film and could verify this one way or another for me, I’d love to hear from you.
Alejandro González Iñárritu’s next film is called The Revenant, which stars Leonardo DiCaprio as a man who is mauled by a bear and seeks revenge on those who left him for dead. Sounds like it could be pretty good, right? Nobody jinx this one. Don’t even think about it. Leo needs this.
Final Score: Birdman gets a 9/10. Its innovative camera work, stellar cast and clever metatextual approach to the entertainment industry will serve the film well at the Oscars.