Birdman

Keaton Flies into Award Season

            If you have been wandering around the streets looking for Michael Keaton, he has finally been located! He was off starring in the defining role of his career. There, now your worrying is over. What's not over though is our discussion of one of the top movies of 2014. Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu has directed and written many highly acclaimed films such as Biutiful, 21 Grams, and Babel. This where the beauty and total investment of one's self into the filmmaking process pays off. Birdman takes the conventional cut and paste style of movies and leaves the viewer enveloped in every character's effort.

            Before seeing this film, I have always been a huge advocate for the movie Black Swan. To me, it never gets old and I am constantly fascinated by the transformation of Natalie Portman's character, Nina, as well as the movie-within-a-movie theme. 

Birdman is the new Black Swan. In my humble opinion.

            There is nothing more refreshing to a movie lover than to see an actor (especially a seasoned one) lose his or herself in a role. Michael Keaton (the best Batman) has not given us that gift. The closest he has ever come was as the sarcastic zombie Beetlejuice back in the 80s. He has now trumped that performance simply by playing himself. 

Riggan (Keaton) used to be the man behind the mask that everyone looked up to. When he starred as the "Birdman" back in the 80s and 90s he was the center of all the red carpet flashes. Now, he is directing a Broadway play adaptation starring himself and just doesn't like knowing that the Birdman has become old news. While attempting make a triumphant comeback on the stage he, along with his Bird persona residing in his mind, now have more perseverance than any newcomer in showbiz.

             Apart from the brilliant acting and an unbelievably mastered script, the best part about this film is the structure. Inarritu set out to make Birdman flow from scene to scene rather than just having cuts and pauses like every other movie. There is no brief blackouts or time jumps in the set, it's all one smooth walk from location to location. I hope they bought enough rags to shine their cinematography Oscar with. 

Keaton channels his inner "Walter White" while
making a run for it down Broadway

            Sure, the continuous shot method is very cool but the reason it stands out is based off the perfection from those onscreen. Keaton is the man that will reap the awards but Edward Norton, Emma Stone, and a dramatically genius Zach Galifianakis can count on their share of nominations, as well!  Each performance is the epitome of visceral. Mind, body, and soul went into preparation and I cannot stress how nice it is to be able to see hard work as an art form. Do not be afraid to get sucked into the mind games Birdman plays. The dark comedy mixed with the leaving-some-doors-open drama is a display that can only be found in the highest tier of film. Watch it once and then hit rewind because this is something that is so much fun to fill in the blanks with. GRADE: 9/10

            

The Interview

Controversy wrapped in Comedy

           The antics are idiotic, the plot is not at all fool-proof, and target is the most evil person of the 21st century. The Interview has scraped up as much news coverage as humanly possible and given a new reinforcement of what the Freedom of Speech truly means. There is no holding back whatsoever. If you're going to make a movie about the assassination of an enemy that is still living, it's go big or go home.

            Seth Rogen and James Franco have become the center of this worldwide phenomenon after being condemned by the real Kim Jong Un himself. Why stop there? This movie has even gotten President Obama threatened, the crowd over at Sony hacked, and even all of North Korea's internet completely shut down. If there's more power that's come from another source of entertainment, point me to the direction and buy me a ticket, please. This is, without a doubt, the gutsiest move in showbiz since Mr. Charlie Chaplin's The Great Dictator made a mockery of Adolf Hitler's--THE most sinister being since satan himself--and his Third Reich during World War II.

            If you saw This Is The End back in 2013, you got a slight taste of the ridiculousness that comes from the minds of Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg. After spearheading that hilarious train wreck, they have decided to take on a popular punchline in current events: the supreme leader of North Korea, Kim Jong Un. Everything goes and there can be no holding back. They took on this project surely with the knowledge of what controversy they could drum up but I am sure the waves this has created are crashing down harder than expected.

Okay, now to talk about how insanely funny it is!

             James Franco likes to draw a crowd in any way he possibly can. He's revolutionized the selfie and how to get the paparazzi talking just about how crazy his Instagram photos are. It is no secret that he carries himself with confidence and would love to play someone like Dave Skylark. Arrogant as the day his long and a fashion sense close to Kim Jong Un's barber, Skylark is the host of "Skylark Tonight," a celeb gossip-driven talk show that finds whatever secret the spotlight may be hiding.

            Now, behind the scenes is Aaron Rapoport (Rogen)--"Skylark Tonight's" senior producer. When he finds out the supreme leader is obsessed with Dave Skylark, he sees the ratings fly higher and higher and a few phone calls to Asia must be made. After they are granted an interview under extremely strict protocol, the CIA shows up at their door with one request: kill the Kim. Lizzy Caplan (Mean Girls) may be too hot to be in the CIA but she catches the eye of Skylark with her sarcastic charm and fake glasses. Her masterful plot to plant a fatal dose of ricin in Un is a little too much for Aaron and Dave to handle and they do so hilariously.

            The chemistry between these two Freaks is hard to come by in Hollywood. Their sense of humor and ability to fully compliment each other is what makes this watchable-- well, that and the ending. There is an immense of amount of crude, lewd, and Kim Jong -ude in this script  but some of the jokes create laughter that does not stop. Go ahead and let yourself get honeypotted into this one but just know that it takes every stereotype and North Korean gag to level 100 while giving a hefty nod to Katy Perry. Even a friendly game of basketball (wink wink). There's no way a completely quality movie can be made with such a far reaching and offensive plot but that definitely does not mean you can't sit back and have a good laugh! I don't know how to rate this movie (I'm sorry to admit) so I looked up Kim Jong Un's height and went with that. GRADE (in inches): 5.9/10