I have often said TV is the new cinema (I might write that up) and I believe it to be true. The cinema has been letting me down as of late… until Birdman.

I grew up on Michael Keaton films (Beetlejuice, Batman, Multiplicity) I’m a kid of the late 80s and 90s and while I didn’t follow his career too closely after those decades he will always be nostalgic to me. And he will always be the Batman, he was my Batman.
So it was with a tinge of worry and trepidation when I heard of his new film Birdman which is based around an old superhero actor wanting to break back into the acting scene with a self staring and self directed play.

The trailer thankfully doesn’t give much away. In fact as I sat down to watch the film I could barely remember some of it’s details and it is all the better for it.
I don’t like to hyperbole much but gosh Keaton is back. It is a perfect role for him because he is here acting out parts of his life, parts of his past. He was the big 90s superhero with his choice of projects and then faded away. The film borders on the meta where you’re unsure if you’re watching Keaton’s character or the man himself. You find yourself rooting for both Keaton and his character to do well here. Once a film can achieve anything close to that, it has you.

Keaton bounces off Ed Norton in every scene with a kind of energy I have missed from these two actors for a long time. Their long back and forth, almost Sorkin styled, monologues are engrossing and all you want is more. It is of a certain preference the walking and talking through corridors of which Birdman employs here (see West Wing for the best in the business at it) but I think it all works to the film’s advantage.

I’ve been describing the film to friends that it plays out much like an actual play whereby there are almost hardly any noticeable cuts. It gives a certain breathlessness to the 2 hour film which rarely stops to take a moment. That might not sound like a good thing but it is. There is a manic feel to everything, a reflection in Keaton’s character mindset over the course of this life snippet.

Kudos should also be given to Emma Stone in her best performance since The Help. I was worried initially that her character would turn into a stereotype neglected and angry daughter but as the story developed we got so much more from her character. Stone isn’t used too much during the story but when she comes out from the background for her pieces are worth it.
All I can say is go see Birdman to witness this finesse of directing, editing, storytelling and acting at work. It will remind you the cinema can still impress.