Good, not great

Rating: 7/10 (9 January 2009)

One thing I like about films directed by Clint Eastwood is their consistent attempt to depict the shattered American Dream. In this case, the shattered dream is that of justice in the LA of the late 20s and early 30s. Clearly, the dream has suffered at the hands of an LAPD and a judicial system that fall far short of normal requirements, even for that time.
Eastwood tells the story well but it is difficult to swallow the fact that the changeling had a mother of his own and yet he was willing to impersonate young Walter and so pass off as Christine Collins' son. I thought at first that it might be because he had run away from harm but, alas, that was not the case. Sadly, that apparently minor detail opens a massive credibility gap in the film's narrative.
That aside, praise must go to the effective direction, the generally sound acting, above all to the scrupulous attention to period detail, and the awesome photography. In terms of acting, the duplicitous nature of the murderer is superbly conveyed by Jason Harner but there is one serious minus: Angelina is too "jolie" and too stereotyped, a typical beauty down to her hat and clothing with the photography clearly emphasizing that beauty in its time capsule.
As the movie progressed I found it hard to detect any real emotion in Jolie. Perhaps Estwood wanted to extract a restrained approach from her but I just do not think it works. As I see it, that is a central weakness in the film but when all is said and done, and in spite of those drawbacks, Changeling is a film well worth seeing especially because Eastwood refuses to provide an easy remedy to a very difficult situation and ultimately to paper over yet another crack in the American dream.
Eastwood's honesty I value most of all: He does not shirk the usefulness of the death penalty to rid society of elements clearly unfit to live in it and, most importantly, unable to admit their evil deeds.