Lorna Irvine reviews a meta film with 'superb performances across the board'.
It's surely no coincidence that Riggan Thomson (pronounced Reagan) is the main protagonist of Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu's rich satire, as his character undergoes a kind of exorcism of the soul. A washed-up character actor, more famous for his role as superhero Birdman, he just wants to be acknowledged, credible in the face of franchises and shallow celebrity culture.
A more monstrous leading man it's hard to find--Thomson is self-absorbed, vain and venal, completely oblivious to those who love him so that they themselves are merely bit-part actors in his life. And he may or may not be having a breakdown.
In a struggling theatre adaptation of Raymond Carver's 'What We Talk About When We Talk About Love', he receives a boost when one of his co-stars Lesley (Naomi Watts) brings in her boyfriend, respected yet sleazy actor Mike Shiner (Edward Norton) who is so method, he swaps water for gin on stage.
Much has of course been made of the very meta nature of the narrative, and that's worth mentioning--eyebrows will arch at theatre gags about improvised staging choices and film in-jokes alike (Norton refers to being a rival for Ryan Gosling in the wiry, troubled roles; Keaton's growling voice in his head emulates his 'Batman' replacement Christian Bale), but theatre and film are mere frames for a study in human fallibility--every single person is damaged goods, needing to connect, love and belong. Imperious, spiteful theatre critic Tabitha Dickinson (Lindsay Duncan) thus becomes a mere catalyst for Thomson's suicide attempts, claiming she will 'kill the play'.
The endlessly whirling tracking shots in which the audience voyeuristically tails various characters are complemented by Antonio Sanchez's jazz drumming, suggesting the tormented disquiet of Thomson's brain.
Superb performances across the board, yet there is arguably only one truly likeable character in Sam, Thomson's daughter. Emma Stone invests a young punky woman with enough humour and brittle self-awareness to usurp the 'struggling ex-junkie' cliché. She's a revelation. Norton, meanwhile, reminds the audience what he's capable of, veering from lecherous egomaniac to broken man.
This Birdman is flying by the seat of his grubby white pants, and is all the more dark, ambiguous, beautiful, funny and true for it.
Birdman (15) is on general release. Director: Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu. Starring: Michael Keaton, Edward Norton, Emma Stone, Zach Galifianakis.
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