Great acting, technically accomplished and lots of jet black humor

Rating: 7/10 (10 November 2014)

A washed up big screen actor mounts a Broadway show as a comeback vehicle and with this loon in charge of production, things go hilariously off the wall. Keaton does fantastic work here as a man desperately clinging to the need to be relevant again and is tortured and occasionally guided by the voice and powers of Birdman. As opening night gets closer, the stress sends Riggan into a tailspin of unhinged behavior - his play might be an embarrassment, an actor keeps sabotaging previews by getting drunk and trashing the set or having an erection on stage, his daughter fresh out of rehab hates his guts, his kind of girlfriend might be pregnant, he's burning through all of his cash on this play and the most powerful critic wants to kill his play on the principle of who he is. It's not easy being a self absorbed lunatic, who once played an iconic superhero. Occasionally Birdman can meander and by the film's conclusion, every actor has their scene to emote and while a few of those can feel a little episodic, there's always enough humor and wit to overcome any bumps along the way. Norton in particular is a standout who is hilarious as a difficult actor. Designed to be one long unbroken shot, occasionally it feels like a gimmick, but more often than not, the cinematography feels invisible. Most of the camera work feels spontaneous and the focus pulling is as accomplished as the seamless edits. Birdman is an odd and original work with some jet black humor throughout and a fully committed cast makes this always fascinating to watch.