Changeling (2009) - Movie
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Movie Plot |
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The prayers of Christine Collins are met when her kidnapped son is returned - but amidst the frenzy of the photo-op reunion, she realises the child is not hers. Facing corrupt police and a sceptical public, she desperately hunts for answers, only to be confronted by the shocking truth that will change her forever. This movie is inspired by true events that took place in 1920s Los Angeles.
User's Review and Ratings |
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Changeling
What I loved most: Detailed storytelling
What I really hated: Editing
This is not Clint Eastwood's finest but it is certainly quite compelling and remarkable. The plot revolves around the search of a single mum for her missing child, which was hindered by the corrupted and malevolent police force trying to hide its incompetence from the eyes of the public. Angelina Jolie gave a tour de force performance as the angsty and grief-stricken mother who puts everything on the line to face down the authority in a campaign to seek justice and recover her son. However, to her terror, she was incarcerated at a mental faculty for her defiance and forced to endure humiliation, oppression and haplessness. Jolie's deft portrayal makes it easy for the audience to empathize with the plight of her character and the heart wrenching plot gets even more engaging as the film depicts the scheming manipulations and machinations of the police to conceal their ineptitude over the fact that they were shirking their responsibility as law enforcers. The situation continues to spiral into an abyss of totalitarianism under the despotism and dictatorship of the police until an influential and righteous clergyman stepped in to intervene and lend support to lone woman fighting so many battles at once. It gets even more depressing when she had to deal with and accept the possible demise of her child at the hands of a maniacal serial killer who derived morbid satisfaction from brutalizing children. The carnage and savagery was kept to a minimum but the cinematography was done in a way that is even more disturbing and unsettling as it leaves the audience to wonder. This is much more effective than films like the 'Saw' series which actually shows the gruesome killing with homicidal glee but does nothing to leave us chilled and numbed with fear and dread. This film will no doubt raise a few doubts in our minds over national security issues and transparency concerns over law enforcement. The film would have fared better though, with a more substantial screen presence from John Malkovich as he was severely under-utilized in the film. Succinct editing would be much appreciated as well. It would also have been interesting to examine the psyche of the killer to give a brief history of his background and allow the audience an insight into what had possessed and driven him to commit such heinous acts against innocents. After all that has been said, the bittersweet denouement of the film will resonate through your soul, leaving you with bitter rage, inconsolable grief and a twinge of hope.
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CO's Review |
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Clint Eastwood has not always been the best actor there is. But when it comes to directing, the laconic Man With No Name knows what he wants. And in this dark thrilling drama that combines two sets of events into one (the alteration of the Prohibition-era LAPD from corruption to redemption, and the Wineville Chicken Coop Murders initiated by child predator Gordon Northcott), Eastwood takes his direction to a new height.
To think that all this comes from an anxious mother who lost her son!
Fans who are already familiar with his other films like "Letters From Iwo Jima" and "Million Dollar Baby" will find it less terse and a little 'unEastwood'. Then again, "Changeling" is much more concise and spot on than all his other directorial works. Every scene is important and not one is wasted on long unnecessary dialogues. Not that the dialogue is that inspirational but to squeeze so many stories inside one movie, this would be considered an excellent effort.
Angelina Jolie has long annoyed us with action movies that showcase her figure and hotdog lips makes this reviewer scream "For the love of God, you're tough, we know - let's move on!" But she has indeed moved on and gave a brilliant performance as Christine Collins. Her act is definitely the highlight of this writer's reviewing year as she portrays Collins perfectly - a fragile single mother in the late 20s who lost her son and was forced to accept the one given to her by the police. Many might think that in such cases a mother would be extremely hysterical but Jolie did not go for the easy, choosing to show the audience this shy, delicate being who doesn't want to create trouble, only her son back. John Malkovich needs no appraisal, for he seems to know what he is doing as Presbyterian minister Gustav Briegleb. This character deserved more screen time.
The late 20s to early 30s setting is quite remarkable. You will love the whole film's dark nuances. One would wish to see more of LA in those years but then again this is not the movie in which such things as background is as significant as, say "Chicago" or "Gangsters Of New York".
In short, if you had never bothered about Jolie all this while, this is the movie you might just find yourself changing your mind.
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 John Malkovich |  Angelina Jolie |  Angelina Jolie | ||
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