'Birdman' Flies, But it Doesn't Soar

Rating: 7/10 (3 November 2014)

'Birdman' is without question a technical marvel that should be seen by anyone serious about film making. The cinematography is groundbreaking, I wouldn't be surprised if it were to spark a new wave of films trying to capture those magical moments of following actors around, while delivering lines for up to 10-15 minutes at a time. And of course the actors are completely up to the challenge, they give some very strong performances, especially Keaton (I think only Foxcatcher's Steve Carell can rival his performance for Best Actor). But while the movie had all of these fantastic technical achievements (acting, production design, and cinematography), the storyline seemed just a tad derivative for me. When I say that, I mean the classic, 'a has been is giving it one last shot at fame', but instead of the common sports story theme, its about an acting career. I think people are giddy over the fact that the movie basically describes Keaton's acting career and are giving the film slightly too much praise for that sole reason, had it been a different actor playing Riggan, the results would (in my mind) be less spectacular. When all is said and done, the movie didn't have much 'excitement' or 'thrills', it certainly had its moments, but not a strong driving force that kept me on the edge of my seat waiting for the next scene to come.
And as a final thought, 'Birdman' really got me reminiscing about, 'Black Swan' and 'The Wrestler', I won't list the similarities, but there are plenty of them (especially between 'Black Swan'). I prefer both of those films when compared to 'Birdman', I think they feature stronger central characters. But my point is that i'm unsure as to whether its a good thing that 'Birdman' inspired me to recollect my thoughts of similar movies and compare the bunch, or it was an unfortunate sin, because it took my thoughts away from 'Birdman'.
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