Birdman is one of the most interesting films of late. The film covers some interesting topics through artsy surrealism. It shows off the self doubt and anxiety celebrities feel through a imaginary manifestation of Michael Keaton’s character’s most popular role “Birdman”. The film beautifully illustrates Michael Keaton losing his mind though the increasingly claustrophobic cinematography. The style of directing though one continuous shot instead of multiple shots shows off the one continuous string of ideas presented in the film. Birdman won Best Picture at the 87th Academy Awards in 2015, and for good reasons. When it comes to the year 2014 in movies, Birdman is one of the most complex yet entertaining films of the year.
The film is darkly comedic in nature, and that is achieved though its style. The biggest element brought up in terms of style while discussing Birdman, is the film’s achievements in directing and cinematography. Director Alejandro Gonzales Innaritu and cinematographer Emmanuel “Chivo” Lubezki achieved an unusual look to the film, they made the film look like it was one continuous shot. There are no visible cuts or unexpected changes in camera angle, the film is shot as if it was telling one long continuous idea. The film is not one continuous shot (it would have cost a ton of money), but they achieved the look though editing techniques. That choice in cinematography and editing helps the story feel more claustrophobic, leaving no moment for the audience to take a breath and calm their nerves. The director and cinematographer achieved a constant level of anxiety though that simple choice. The tone of the film starts out light hearted, but slowly becomes increasingly darker as Michael Keaton’s character falls more into a paranoid state. Michael Keaton plays Riggan, a washed up actor looking to become relevant again through a play he directs, adapts, and stars in. His mental health starts to shatter as he gets closer to opening night. They show off the slow decent into madness through their uses of the camera angles. The film starts out with the camera in continuous wide angle, but as Riggan starts to lose it, the camera angles become more personal. The last half of the film is mostly shot in a continuous close up or medium shot. The close up is used mostly in scenes where Riggan is being taunted by “Birdman”, a mental manifestation of Riggan’s most popular character. Many scenes with the “Birdman” voice over are shot in close up or extreme close up. The movie’s cinematography starts out more grounded, following the characters in with natural movement and flow. As the film progresses with Riggan slowly losing control, the cinematography becomes more unnatural and almost fantastical. The change is mostly noticeable during the scenes of Riggan flying over Time Square. The film uses perspective in an interesting way during the scenes where Riggan is using his “powers”. The scenes start out with us seeing Riggan flying or throwing things with his mind. In those scenes, it is presented as if he has Birdman’s superpowers. The perspective quickly changes when someone enters the room. In one particular scene, Riggan is freaking out in his dressing room. Riggan, believing that he is “Birdman” is shown throwing items with his mind around the room. When his producer (played by Zach Galifianakis) walks in, Riggan is shown throwing things around with his hands. Because he doesn’t believe that Riggan is super, the scene quickly changes to a more grounded freak out scene. In that quick moment, we flip from Riggan’s mind to the real world. The film shows off its initial style and the development into a completely different style though the directing, editing, and cinematography choices.
The film would fit nicely in the comedic genre as it is a satire about the idea of celebrity status. The film also could fit into drama as it is a deep dive into a man’s psyche as he tries to become relevant again in popular culture. The film starts out with a slower, more grounded pace. It slowly becomes less grounded, more claustrophobic and almost fantastical. As Riggan loses his mind, the film becomes more unnatural and confusing. This slow change describes Riggan’s declining mental state.
Even though this film is only 5 years old, many film critics and fans have been debating the themes of this film and what it truly means. At its core, Birdman is a film about celebrity status and how fleeting it truly is. Riggan is fighting to stay relevant in the hollywood eye, but is always worried about how the world views him. He is always second guessing his choices and the choices of the people around him. The main exhibition of his self doubt and anxiety is the physical and mental manifestation of “Birdman”, Riggan’s most popular role and the only character anyone remembers him for. Birdman constantly voices Riggan’s doubts about the play, his future in his artform, and opinions of people around him through voice overs sprinkled through the scenes. Birdman is shown in physical form during the third act of the film. The physical form of Birdman shows Riggan a world where he is important and loved by all through action packed sequences. Riggan struggles with what the world wants from him and what he wants from himself throughout the film. Edward Norton’s character on the other hand, believes that he has to “bear his soul” on stage for eternity. Mike (Edward Norton) is so devoted to his craft, that he lacks at living a fruitful life. That is proven through his costars’ comments to him about his persona off of the stage. Mike puts so much of himself on stage that he has none left to give off of the stage. Mike is only truly living when he is portraying someone else’s life on stage. Because of his devotion, he becomes the talking point of the play, stealing the spotlight from Riggan. The stolen thunder causes more anxiety and stress in his life, sending him deeper into madness. Riggan is not only fighting to keep himself relevent, he is also fighting his costar as he steals his supposed spotlight. Even though he is bitter towards Mike, Riggan admires Mike’s style of acting. Mike puts it all out there, never bending to people’s opinions and perceptions. Riggan wants to develop not just his acting career but also his life into that ideal. Sam (Emma Stone) is Riggan’s daughter. Sam has a bitter attitude about the idea of celebrity status and her dad’s journey for relevancy. Sam is a recovering addict who was sent through rehab. She shows her dad a workshop they did in rehab. She covers a toilet paper roll in lines and rips off one square. The one square represents how long humans have been on earth. That exercise shows off her point of view throughout the film. Sam believes that even though we build up a legacy throughout our short time on earth, none of that matters. We might see our legacy as huge, but we are such a small speck in the history of the world. Our legacies don’t mean anything when compared to the entire history of the world. That concept ties into the idea of celebrity status and whether our legacies truly matter in the grand scheme of things. Through Mike, Sam and the Birdman, Riggan learns that once he lets go of everyone’s opinions and perceptions of him, he can truly be what he wants. Riggan and his daughter (played by Emma Stone), rekindle their relationship after Riggan shoots himself in the head opening night on stage and ends up in the hospital. He lets go of everyone’s expectations and opinions and does the unexpected. That act, as brutal and dark as it truly is, earns him respect from his peers. The act even births a new form of theatre called “Ultra Realism”. When his daughter leaves the room, Riggan jumps out the window. His daughter reenters the room, searching for her dad. She heads over to the window, hoping he didn’t jump. She looks up and sees something that puts a smile on her face. I believe that thing is Riggan flying. Riggan finally lets go of what the world expects of him by doing something expected onstage. The accident molds his relationship his daughter, fixing what was once broken. He can finally be what he truly knows he is, Birdman, because he knows that there is someone that remembers him fondly on earth. Birdman covers very simple topics like celebrity status, the self doubt and anxiety that status brings, expectations and opinions from others, and the concept of living free of those expectations and opinions. Birdman is definitely about the expectations and opinions from others and ourselves (even more extreme for celebrities and influencers) that we feel daily. The film also presents a way out of that negativity, as Riggan lets go of it and becomes who he truly is, the Birdman. The film presents these topics and themes, as simple as they are, through interesting and artsy means. The film tackles simple concepts through complex means, with the inclusion of superhero elements and darkly comedic elements.
Birdman is a film that truly about the idea of celebrity status, the stress that it brings, and whether it’s truly worth it. This is shown through Riggan’s constant anxiety and self doubt about his career, Mike’s devotion to his craft that leaves him with nothing else in his life and Sam’s idea that our impacts on the world are not as massive as we might think in the grand scheme of things. “Birdman” tackles the idea of how much our legacies impact out world through super complex and artistic means. With Birdman’s themes and creative ways to investigate those means, Birdman proves itself as one of the quintessential examples of thought provoking artistic cinema.
Comments