Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)

"It's important to me! Alright? Maybe not to you, or your cynical friends who's only ambition is to go viral, but to me...to me...this is - God. This is my career, this is my chance to do some work that actually means something." 

Released: November 14, 2014

Directed by: Alejandro G. Inarritu

Rating: 4 1/2 stars

Description: A former superhero actor tries to revive his career by writing, directing and starring in a Broadway play. In the process he hears voices from his Birdman character which highlights his own insecurities about himself, love and life. 

Review: I'm back with my next Best Picture movie review. This time for Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) Well, I don't really know what I was expecting going into this movie, but it was...interesting to say the least. I've noticed that Best Picture winners, particularly the modern ones have a certain formula about them that represent that category. Weirdness. Uniqueness. Thought Provoking. Downright blunt and philosophical. Controversial. It's usually one of those things or more that make are nominated. I think if I had seen this when it first came out, I wouldn't have understood it as well. I think I saw it at the right time. 

Michael Keaton was completely insane in the best way as Riggan Tomson. He was hallucinating and hearing the voice of Birdman (the character he played 20 years ago) in his head telling him what he believed to be the truth. He wrote, starred in and directed the play What We Talk About When We Talk About Love as a way for him to be relevant again. For him to be important. Loved. And throughout struggles with those insecurities. I really felt like the theme of the movie was insecurities. Wanting to be loved and feel important. To matter. It was also a satire on himself in a way. Same with Ed Norton's character. Michael Keaton had played Batman and probably felt like after that struggled for relevance in roles and is essentially making fun of himself telling an autbiographical story at the same time. With Ed Norton it has him being difficult to work with, which is true of the actor in real life. 

Then we have Emma Stone as Sam who is Riggan's daughter and just came out of rehab. So she's assisting her dad, and also trying to find her identity again. Feel loved by her father since he wasn't really part of her life that much being so focused on his career and ego. 

Naomi Watts and Andrea Riseborough also gave great performances as Lesley and Laura and I was NOT expecting that kiss between them. In that moment I understand why it happened though. They both wanted to feel special and Riggan told Leslely she was beautiful and talented and he was lucky to have her, but Laura, who had been with Riggan said he never said anything like that to her. Lesley repeated what he said and then they shared a kiss. That's why I keep going back to love. Because at the core, this movie is about being relevant. Being loved. Having a purpose. And it's about our insecurities. It was a very different way to go about it, but it worked. I think this movie deserved to win Best Picture. And Michael Keaton should have won Best Actor, but usually the best performances don't always win the awards. They do live on and spark all kinds of discussion and most of all, they make you think and that's why we love movies.