So it begins, my catching up on Oscar winning and nominated films. So tonight I finally sat down and watched the film Birdman. Now, I didn't have any thoughts or expectations going into the film other than my sister and brother in-law liked it. Now after watching the film I can state simply that it was boring. about 30 minutes into the movie I had thoughts about just stopping it, but I sat through the remaining hour and thirty minutes somehow. Now, the film was shot spectacularly and the performances were great, and even the writing wasn't too bad. The characters themselves so though were not endearing, the storyline was uninteresting, and there was just a lot of shouting, yelling, and raw anger. It doesn't take a lot of talent to scream and shout, just watch a Michael Bay film. I was honestly expecting more, the film did have some similarities though I noticed to Silver Linings Playbook and American Hustle in regards to especially the shouting, yelling, and anger, but also the not so endearing characters and boring storyline (aside of Jennifer Lawrence of course though). I don't know why there is such a trend lately with Hollywood films; I think they're going through a phase that was similar in the 70's. Michael Keaton is very talented man and his portrayal of a psychotic, washed up actor was spot on, yet I couldn't really empathize with his character until the very end, and by that point it was too late. Edward Norton played a self absorbed fat head very well, but I couldn't stand his character whatsoever. Emma Stone, played the recovering drug addict with a gross attitude very effectively, although once again nothing there. Naomi Watts had a small role as Micheal Keaton's wife in the film, and she brought class and an anchor point to the film. Whereas Zach Galfianakis brought levity, and wit to the film (also a small role, which was a real shame). As I mentioned the film was shot very exquisitely; reminded me of Gosford Park and Pride & Prejudice. The film score was essentially obnoxious, and that is all I have to say about that. The lighting was actually quite spectacular, but that's about it. The premise I think is a wee bit ridiculous, but it could have worked. The whole Michael Keaton acting psychotic though just didn't work that well. Also, I wasn't certain if this was Hollywood political film blasting big budget films as opposed to films similar to Birdman, but that was kind of ridiculous as well. If you don't see this film you aren't missing anything. I could have done something far more enjoyable with my time, and kind of wish that I did after spending hours finishing up a statistical analysis of a survey that I create for my grad school class. I found out today that since I like House of Cards and Niccolo Machiavelli that I may enjoy reading Plutarch, according to my friend acquiring his MA while studying England. Just an interesting anecdote. I really feel like I should write something concerning international matters, but it's hard to do that without sounding too politically abrasive or antagonistic I suppose. Perhaps we can all reflect on an old Vulcan proverb, "Only Nixon could go to China."Birdman trailer
Robot Chicken Disney Princesses (need some humor, granted inappropriate, but quite hysterical)
