Filmed as an apparent 'one-take' for tenuous reasons, this art-flick is well-made and entertaining.

Rating: 8/10 (24 April 2018)

'Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue Of Ignorance) (2014)' is filmed under the guise of being a single unbroken take for tenuous reasons that, while somewhat valid and certainly appropriately 'arty', are actually rather weak and generally irrelevant when it becomes clear that the conceit was one that the filmmakers wanted to experiment with regardless of the source story, whether it be to solidify its art-house status or to experiment with the technical boundaries of its cast and crew, even when that story clearly strains what is reasonable with this form of story-telling. The first time the flick fast-forwards time while maintaining its fluid style is incredibly jarring, for example, and the second downright breaks the immersion, and arguably intent, of the piece altogether. It is successful in its attempt to appear relatively seamless, though it is digitally enhanced and a few fairly obvious yet slightly hidden cuts do occur, and the one-take mentality almost blends into the back of our minds on more than one occasion. Despite all this talk of technicalities, it is actually the powerful (though clearly 'oscar-baiting') performances and well-written screenplay that makes this satirical piece an enjoyable and entertaining experiment that takes its Hollywood commentary just seriously enough for it to seem genuine, yet not so seriously so that it seems overwhelmingly pretentious. I won't deny that since it looks, feels, plays and generally just seems like it wants to be a play, then perhaps it should've simply been one, though it does use the past career of its protagonist with his new stage-bound setting as an allegory for the overall Hollywood system and it's easy to make the argument that this is perhaps best explored through the medium that it produces. However, no matter how 'arty' it is trying to be seemingly for the sake of being so, it is certainly well-made and entertaining, at least on a first watch. It doesn't quite soar, but it glides from time to time. 8/10