Changeling

Changeling

"Changeling" is about a single mother, Angelina Jolie, who loses her son, only to have a fake replacement son brought to her from the L.A. Police Department. She then gets embroiled in a political situation spurred on by a local priest, John Malkovich, in which corruption is dealt with. Oh, and Angelina Jolie screams that she wants "MY SON!" about a hundred times throughout all this. I can't say that she does a great job. She cries a lot and yells about her son, but she just annoyed me more than anything. It might have had something to do with those stupid hats she wears in nearly every scene. I guess women wore hats like that 70 years ago? Accuracy is fine and all, but those stupid hats got on my nerves...not sure why.

The film is directed by Clint Eastwood (who seems to be obsessed with misery in his old age) and he creates a nice feel for this period piece. But I just don't usually care for period pieces that take place in L.A. Not sure why, I just don't like the way that city and its people are portrayed when dealing with the past. It has its interesting moments, though. Jolie's sanity is questioned a bit, but it isn't focused on enough to make this film entertaining. It becomes an overlong (140+ minutes) story that cannot decide whether it wants to be a kidnapping, political, pyschological, or a mystery story. I would've liked at least one of those elements fleshed out, but instead they took a quantity over quality approach and, for me, it failed.

Eric Harris - www.canneltoncritic.com

Changeling (Clint Eastwood, 2008)

***
USA

If the world were a Clint Eastwood picture, it would run very very smoothly, since any prospective threat to the system would announce itself efficiently, whether by slurring their words, smirking lasciviously, breaking into a loony grin, resembling a lesbian or adopting an irregular, indecipherable yet malevolent accent while sending a bereft mother to the nuthouse for undermining their power.

Despite Eastwood's harried tactics, it's impossible not to get drawn into this tale of true and sensational events surrounding the disappearance of 9-year-old Walter Collins from his mother's home in late-20s California. The two face expressions - half-stifled anger and wrenching cries - which Angelina Jolie selects to represent Christine Collins do win over your sympathy, inextricably linked as they are to the fact that there once truly was a Christine Collins, whose child really was abducted, who - with frightening conviction - was saddled with a dodgy replacement, and who - for habitual reasons of convenience and patriarchy - was committed to a psychiatric ward when crying foul.

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Super Marcey's Changeling Review

Rating: 4.5/5

Ever since I had first seen the trailer I really wanted to see this film, I love Clint Eastwood films and the story seemed something which was right up my alley. So what took me so long to get around to seeing this? I honestly have no idea, I have had it all year to watch and I finally just decided to sit down and watch it.

I really wish I had done that as soon as I got this film, to sum it up I really loved it. I know people didn’t care for this film and others did, that is the thing with films. Not everyone is going to share the same opinion, but I was really engrossed by this and I found it overall just fantastic.

The film is based on true events (as like a film it isn’t entirely accurate but the changes they made worked as a film overall) of Christine Collins whose son Walter goes missing one day. After months of searching he is apparently found but Christine is convinced the child brought back is not her son. The police call her insane and commit her to an asylum as horrific events start to unfold about murders. The murders in real life are known as the Wineville Chicken Coop Murders.

It all sounds a little crazy right? But the fact is that did actually happen, you can read up about the real case, and you will be pretty stunned. I hadn’t really heard much about it, I am a true crime nut but this case hadn’t come up in any books I’ve been reading lately. As I mentioned things were changed for the film but the fact remains that Walter did go missing, a boy was returned to Christine and she was committed to the hospital, and the police were exposed for what they did and how they treated her.

So what did I love about this? The way the film was told, I thought it flowed so well, it moved at a good pace, there was nice character development. I like films that don’t rush and they take time to tell the story, now not every film can do this right but Clint Eastwood knows a thing or two about pacing and he does it so damn well. He really hit the nail on the head when he cast Angelina Jolie, she looked the part, and she played the part to perfection. I could easily say this is one of her best performances if not her best one. She really is perfect here, for me she was flawless. She really does outshine everyone else and holds her own, she is worth seeing the film. Jeffrey Donovan is good as Captain J.J. Jones, he hit most of the right notes and I did like him in the role. He really made you want to just slap him something stupid, which is the reaction you’re supposed to have for the character. I was really engrossed by Michael Kelly as Detective Lester Ybarra, he is such a great actor and he really delivered the goods. He played all the right notes and he was just a real joy to watch. Of course we have John Malkovich as Rev. Gustav Briegleb and this was a role he could do in his sleep. He’s always great to see and he makes it worth it, he brings his A game.

This film wouldn’t have worked so well without the fantastic performances, everyone as I said delivered. Clint did an excellent job with his cast, and his directing his top notch. He brings out the best with his performers and the locations and shots are all just so fantastic and you really get a feel for the time it was set. It is all shot so beautifully and with a tone of sadness which fits the story of the film.
The only negative I had was with the script, some of the dialogue of Christine’s was really repetitive and it got annoying towards the end. I am sure they could have scripted it a bit differently but alas in the end this is what we got and I really tried not to have it bring the film down.

Recommended for Angelina fans, you can’t go passed this one that is for sure. Naturally if you love Clint behind the camera you need to check this out, and of course if you love true crime and films based on true events this would be for you as well.

(Review written October 30th 2009, first posted on SuperMarcey.com)

Recommendations: Moon (Duncan Jones, 2009), Milk, Hurt Locker, The (Kathryn Bigelow, 2009)

Last updated: 2010-02-15 00:02:50 by SuperMarcey

CHANGELING (2008)

BOTTOM LINE: With a very strong story, subtly executed and detailed direction, this historical drama about a mother’s strong determination to find her kidnapped son is a touching ordeal of love, sacrifice, brutality and police corruption.

THE GOOD: Director Clint Eastwood has served up a rich tapestry of a film in “Changeling”, which goes far beyond its initial synopsis of a woman trying to find her kidnapped son despite the police insisting that they have found him and force her to take a child who is not her son. What unfolds on screen is a detailed account of the systematic corruption of the Los Angeles Police Department and the brutality of a serial killer who preys on children, and how the disappearance of Christine Collins’ (Angelina Jolie) son is mixed up in all of this treachery. The arrogance and disgusting behaviour of the LAPD, as embodied by the Chief Of Police James Davis (Colm Feore) and Captain J.J. Jones (Jeffrey Donovan) who ultimately throw Christine into a mental asylum and will not release her until she signs a document stating that she was wrong in questioning the police about the handling of her son’s case and that the child they brought to her was not her son makes for a touching and excruciating story, even though in the end the hands of the police are forced when the serial killer who may have abducted her child is discovered. On the other hand, there is also the story of that brutal serial killer who abducts his victims with good words and killing them with an axe on a lonely ranch, and then forcing his child-sidekick to help him. All these stories eventually coalesce, almost be accident as the police detective sent to find the killer’s child sidekick was actually there to deport him back to Canada and eventually the kid tells him his horrific tale. An impressive Angelina Jolie puts in a rich performance as Christine Collins, a woman who is strong on the inside but does not always push her point in all cases, befitting the role of the woman in society at the time. As a result, Jolie portrays a unique woman, not all tough, but not all soft either. Clint Eastwood delivers one of his best looking films to date, and his team have carefully recreated the 1920s and 1930s to exacting detail, photographing them with a lovely eloquence and richness that truly make you believe you are there. “Changeling” is an excellent film, brilliantly directed and acted, with a strong story that will engross you from start to finish.

THE BAD: Although Angelina Jolie does an exceptional acting job in this film, her look and her presence as a star do not always match the character she is playing. Christine Collins is strongly interpreted by Eastwood as a woman who is very strong on the inside but does not always show that on the outside; in essence, a character who is in the middle, who can back down if pushed but can also stand up for herself in certain situations. Angelina Jolie unfortunately looks and feels like a tiger of a person, as she always does, and despite her great acting in the film, she still has the look and presence of a tiger which does not quite mix with the character she is portraying. Coupled with the fact that she seems to be crying way too much in this film, even despite the ordeal her character is going through, makes for a small drop in sympathy for her character’s plight. Also, Jeffrey Donovan as Captain J.J. Jones is not all that good, and is perhaps the only member of the cast who has trouble performing with any sense of believability. He has a permanent scowl on his face that I think is meant to be interpreted as being a tough, corrupt policeman, but somehow it looks like he is trying too hard. Thankfully his presence in the film is only in effect an extended cameo.

RATING: 8/10

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Todd Murphy <br />
http://www.allaboutmovies.net

Changeling (2008)

Director: Clint Eastwood~ won 2 Oscars for directing the Unforgiven and Million Dollar Baby. (The Outlaw of Josey Wales, Firefox, Unforgiven, True Crime, Space Cowboys, Bloodwork, Mystic River, Million Dollar Baby, Gran Torino, and Invictus)
Writer: J. Michael Straczynski
Starring: Angelina Jolie~ won Oscar for Girl, Interrupted in 1999. (The Bone Collector, Gone in Sixty Seconds, Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life, Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, and Alexander)
Michael Kelley~ (Man on the Moon)
John Malkovich~ (Of Mice and Men, In the Line of Fire, Con Air, The Man in the Iron Mask, Johnny English, Eragon, and Burn After Reading)
Colm Feore~ (Pearl Harbor)
Amy Ryan~ (Capote and Dan in Real Life)
Jason Butler Harner~ (Next)
Best Quote: Christine Collins~ "I used to tell Walter. ‘Never start a fight...but always finish it’. I didn’t start this fight...but by God. I’m going to finish it."
Filming Locations: California and Vermont, USA
Review:
My dad rented this movie and I did not know what to expect of this movie. It was not a movie I thought I wanted to see. This is because I have never been an Angelina Jolie fan. I have seen a few of Angelina Jolie’s movies and they did not convince me she was a good actress. I watched Changeling and I was quite surprised. This movie was quite good and a movie that makes you wounder if you had kids what would you do in this situation. I guess it helps a movie if you have Clint Eastwood directing it. I don’t think I’ve seen a Clint Eastwood directed movie that I didn’t like. I think this is because most of his movies are about characters up against near impossible odds. Changeling falls right under that category of movies. Christine Collins (Angelina Jolie) has her son kidnaped and the likelihood of finding him is very uncertain. Christine Collins with the help of Rev. Gustav Briegleb (John Malkovich) fight to prove her sanity and to bring an end to the corruption in the LA police department including Chief James E. Davis (Colm Feore). Other characters include Detective Lester Ybarra (Michael Kelley), Carol Dexter (Amy Ryan), and kidnaper Gordon Northcott (Jason Butler Harner quite eery and very convincing performance). This movie is based on a true story that took place in the 1920s-early 1930s in Los Angeles, California USA. A women stepping up to men in power would be very danger; especially, in those times. When we are at the kidnaper’s lair it gives me a feeling much like it did at Buffalo Bill’s house. This movie largely depends on performance because a lot of effects are not needed and the performances were very good. It also depends on accurate time period for the sets and costumes and it does. The movie ends with a huge cliff hanger, which I m not a fan of for single movies. I don’t know the real life story and maybe this is how it ends, but I still don’t like it when a movie ends and you still have one big question that need to be answered. This was a good movie and I recommend parents keep a close eye on their kids. Maybe this is the source of Angelina Jolie’s compulsive baby getting. I can finally tell people I like an Angelina Jolie performance hopefully she can do it again.
Rated: R (violent and disturbing content, language)
3/5

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