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Blu-ray review: Changeling
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Jolie applies her scenery chewing to posters, too.
On March 10, 1928, Christine Collins' 9 year old son, Walter Collins, disappeared from their Los Angeles home while she was at work. The police department found a boy they claimed to be Christine's son in DeKalb, Illinois, five months later, and returned him home. They organized a public reception with the press in tow, hoping to garner some good press after a long string of bad publicity. Everything seemed perfect, except for one problem: Christine Collins said that the boy they brought home to her wasn't her son Walter.
Changeling follows the story of Christine Collins (Angelina Jolie) and her fight against the corrupt police department of Los Angeles. But that isn't the whole truth. In 1928 California, there was a bigger story: the Wineville Chicken Coop murders. These two stories have a lot to do with one another. What began as Christine's fight to know the truth about her son, ended up as a horror story. Unfortunately, director Clint Eastwood had no idea what kind of movie he should make. Instead of making an homage to Angelina Jolie's tears (and there are plenty from her in this film), he should have focused more on the horrors of the murders that took place. It's in this latter part of the film that he hits on something truly terrifying. Not just the thought of your child being kidnapped and having a stranger's child returned to you, but the thought of children being murdered in such an unrelenting manner. It's Eastwood's unflinching direction in this segment of the film that leaves you with chills, and a desire to know more.
But Changeling isn't about these murders, even though it should be. The murders are sort of a twist, left as a footnote before the story moves on to hurried court proceedings and more repetitive outcries from Christine Collins. There's hardly a single actor in Changeling that isn't given some line to repeat ad nauseum, with the most annoying line coming from Ms. Collins: "That's not my son!" By halfway through the film, if you haven't shut it off, you deserve a Nobel prize for patience, and this is a long movie. Although it clocks in at 2 hours and 20 minutes, it feels more like 3 hours. Because Eastwood has only the illusion of a focal point, the film is scattered between various genres, never knowing if it wants to be a court drama, a suspense thriller, a horror movie, or a Lifetime movie of the week.
Aside from the intense scenes dealing with the murderer, other highlights include John Malkovich as Reverend Gustav Briegleb, a man of God fighting the corrupt police force of Los Angeles, who reaches a hand out to Christine Collins, and The Wire's Amy Ryan in an excellent cameo as a fellow mental institution inmate (the police have Collins committed, seemingly for being a woman who stands up to Johnny Law). It's hard to make Malkovich look bad, and although he is a highlight of the film, Eastwood manages to make him look bad. Twice within a 10 minute period during the climax of the film, Reverend Gustav magically shows up at the exact right time to save Christine Collins' ass, and both times are major laugh out loud moments. Is this film a comedy, too, you might ask? Throw another genre on the grill. Let's see what happens!
The worst part of the film, by far, is Angelina Jolie's acting. Someone obviously went to the Sharon Stone acting school to prep for this role. There's no subtlety here; only tears and scenery chewing, and screaming out the same line over and over again. Her acting in this film is a bad curse. You feel like you might want to break the DVD into four pieces and bury those pieces in the four corners of the world because it's the only way to really make it stop. Perhaps Jolie is past her prime.
What does work for Eastwood here is using his regular director of photography, Tom Stern. Stern's cinematography, along with the production design of James J. Murakami, make this film simply gorgeous. There is no other word. What it lacks in integrity, Changeling makes up for in good looks. It's the girl you take to prom when you're trying to lose your virginity. She's not smart, but she makes up for it in looks. And hey, you're 17, what do you care about intellect? You've got some virginity to lose. Changeling has a very antique look without feeling like an imitation. It's the original Tiffany's lamp, not the replica they overcharge you for today. The colors are muted and soft, but there's a certain richness to it, too.
The Blu-ray enhances the visual qualities, so if you find yourself with a Blu-ray player and two and a half hours on your hands, Changeling is worth a look. The cinematography in this film is the reason for Blu-ray. That, and action movies with lots of gore. But if your girlfriend is complaining that all you've watched lately is action flicks with speed-ramping and mo-cap, it wouldn't hurt to try something new.
Changeling isn't the movie it could - or should - have been, but there are redeeming qualities in Eastwood's direction, and it's worth the time for the cinematography and supporting actors alone.
Changeling (2008)
Rated: R
Genre: Drama, Suspense
Formats: DVD, Blu-ray
Running time: 142 minutes
Starring: Angelina Jolie, Jeffrey Donovan, John Malkovich, Amy Ryan
Written by: J. Michael Straczynski
Directed by: Clint Eastwood
You can rent this at Netflix, or buy it at Amazon.
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