Birdman Review

The movie Birdman portrays the life of a washed up actor who at one time in life was very successful, playing as the superhero "Birdman", but now finds himself desperately trying to find something to do in life by trying to become a play writer. The movie is very well written and filmed and keeps the audience interested and engaged throughout the film for many reasons. One of those reasons is because of the sounds and music that they use throughout the movie. In many scenes you can hear a drum set being played in the background, almost like it is right there in front of you, but it isn't. This is an example of an invisible sound that they use to set the mood for different scenes as you never actually see the drummer playing until a short scene in the end. In one scene, the main character Riggan, is seen thrashing around his room, violently throwing items up against the wall and breaking anything and everything in sight. The sound of the drumbeat or invisible sound in this scene is loud and non-stop. It increases the intensity of the scene and gives the audience a shot of adrenaline as it helps them feel the rage Riggan is going through. Sound is of special emphasis in one scene where Riggan is locked out of theatre and has to walk around Times Square in his underwear. The music is upbeat and sporadic and raises the craziness of the situation and just how hectic the scene is for Riggan.

While most of the film's dialogue is person to person, there are parts in the movie that are voice-narrated. The narration is done by the non-existent character that Riggan once played, Birdman, and he talks to the actual Riggan throughout many scenes. Birdman basically tells Riggan how much of loser he is for trying to make it big on broad way, reminding him where he got his fame from and tries to convince him that being Birdman is truly who he is, not the man he's trying to be on stage and as a writer. Birdman is always in the mind of Riggan, especially when he is confused and...