5 stars*****
She was good in The Bone Collector, marvelous in Lara Croft; not so great in Mr and Mrs Smith, wonderful again in A Mighty Heart and obviously shouldn’t have been in the movie Wanted. Angelina Jolie continues to show her fine actress qualities time and time again, perhaps reaching her summit, in Changeling. Her performance was worthy of any best actress Academy Awards Oscar™. In a year of many fine presentations, Angelina Jolie was equal to any of the nominated five.
On the other hand this movie wins hands down among its competition due to the writing skills of J. Michael Straczynski who diligently spent a year going through 6000 pages of documents, just before they were due to be burnt. The transcripts of the city council welfare hearing hold an amazing story; a real story. If this was presented as a work of fiction, Hollywood would have turned it down as being too bizarre and unbelievable. The writer achieved a distinct understanding of an incredible position, where Mrs Collins’ son was kidnapped and a corrupt police department tried to make her take a replacement child and when she protested, had her placed in a mental institution without any method of argument.
The final screenplay bears an extremely close resemblance to the original story, in that only a few minor matters were changed. This challenge brings a movie of 141 minutes without any moments of boredom.
For the writers among us is good to know that the screenplay was written as a spec script. It was then optioned by several studios and producers and still couldn’t find a home. The writer then took 11 days rewriting the script, placed in with his agent, where it immediately found a good home; the evidence is now on the big screen.
The evergreen Clint Eastwood directed the movie, in his own one-off style, which most actors describe as hardly directing at all. Clint Eastwood wrote the music as well.
You can see where the budget of $55 million was spent, the authenticity to take us back to the 1920s and 1930s, was matched by the hard work of the props department. The movie has already broken even with its recent publicity and future DVD sales. It will no doubt move into good profit levels, because after all, this is show business, not show entertainment, although ticket purchasers are only interested in the entertainment, not the business.
Every parent will feel for the mother’s loss, and in particular, with the high hopes she is given at the end of the movie. I warn you in advance, there is no good news for the main character. You can only live in the hope that the monstrosity of the actions of the serial killer (before serial killers had become known by that term) would never be repeated. For the parents who gained closure, at least their lives can continue. For the parents who would never know the outcome, they would spend their lives wondering. Angelina Jolie presented and executed this most horrendous story with a perfect performance.
Popularity: 12% [?]
July 15th, 2010 at 7:37 pm
I think Jolie is the SUPERWOMEN in world that ”US” females need to look up to,not her fame but her intelligence to the world and what happens around in it,she broadens her horizon and has a great care in this world for children.
To me she is the President the one that takes on a challenge head on,and strives for the success in her life.
You are a role model to females,you show how to be independent,how to be driven no matter what the outcome.
Im rating her NO.1 women of the World.