A Complex, Multi-Layered Cinematic Treasure

Rating: 10/10 (16 March 2015)

I am amazed that "Birdman" ever got made, but not surprised at all that little American creative talent was involved in making this film. It's too good for Hollywood.
Most people know the premise by now: a one-time movie star, known primarily for his appearances as a superhero, is trying to reinvent himself as a Broadway star, writing, directing and starring in an adaptation of a Raymond Carver story. A bold choice, for certain.
In a standard Hollywood film, Riggan Thomson (embodied wonderfully by Michael Keaton; I'd like to know how close the Academy vote was for Best Actor) would have faced a predictable story arc, culminating in Riggan's triumph at the end. I am not saying that doesn't happen, and I am not saying that it does. What I am saying is that at no point can you be entirely sure which way this film is going.
That's because director Alejandro González Iñárritu is too clever a filmmaker for that. He took the technique pioneered by Orson Welles in "Touch of Evil" and developed its full potential. Connoisseurs of cinema know it well: the first six minutes of that film are in one continuous six-minute take, packing in half the information the audience needs to understand everything that's coming.
Iñárritu understands the sort of choreography, blocking, and basic effects needed to pull that off, and in "Birdman" he does this over and over again, using the tracking camera to change perceptions and to make transitions from one character's point of view to another. Not only is it excellent cinema, the technique also increases the sense of theater: to pull these shots off, the actors have to rehearse over and over and over until the single smooth long take can be accomplished without tricks. All that's added is a jazz drum score by Antonio Sanchez. (This is the only original music in the film, and, while it does its job, and does it well, you'd never buy the album unless you really like drum solos.)
The story is complex, multi-layered and driven by character; Clint Eastwood is all but alone among American directors when it comes to placing character at the center of a story. We are treated to many of Riggan's demons, not the least of which is the goading voice of Birdman, who would love to get his job back. He's also plagued by family problems; his daughter Sam (Emma Stone, very believable as a spoiled Hollywood brat) is, due to her personal history, unemployable except as her father's personal assistant, and it's not a recipe for familial harmony. We also never quite know with Riggan what's real and what's not; Iñárritu treads that tightrope with finesse.
Edward Norton adds plenty of sparks as Mike Shiner, a certified Broadway star. It would be very easy to wreck the train in this part; for all I know, Norton might actually be the vain artiste with a highly overdeveloped sense of his importance and the value of his extreme methods; what matters is that at no time does the aroma of ham ever come from him. I've never seen Norton better.
The film nicely skewers the entire Broadway scene as well; if "Birdman" is your first exposure to Broadway, nobody could blame you if you never bought a ticket. The scenes with nasty Broadway critic Tabitha (British TV actress Lyndsay Duncan) had to have been pure malicious joy to write and play. Safe to say people like me apparently aren't very welcome in the theatrical world.
I believe most audiences will be as entertained as was I, and the more discerning viewers will want to watch this film several times in order to fully understand Iñárritu's art. This will be a hard one to top.