“Birdman” is about fame and infamy, artistic expression both successful and failed, dealing with a reputation despite whether or not it is earned, and mostly it is about that point in just about everyone’s life in which they question what they are doing, whether they are doing it right, and whether or not they are failing at life in some way. For most people this is known as the “mid-life crisis,” though it can happen to anyone at any point, and it can happen multiple times. It happens to more people than not, and from the outside looking in it can be quite entertaining to watch, even if a little sad and even cringe-inducing. The misery of others is comedy to us, if only because we can relate. We just call it “dark comedy,” and then proceed with the laughs. A man in the throes of an emotional breakdown on the verge of losing everything is not funny, yet it actually is if looked at from the right angle. This is “Birdman.”

Riggan Thomson (Michael Keaton) is adapting a Raymond Carver short story into a stage play, to be produced on Broadway no less, and the only problem for him is that very few people are taking him seriously due to the fact that he made his bread and butter twenty years prior making a trilogy of superhero movies centered around a character named Birdman. He still gets stopped on occasion by Birdman fans asking for him an autograph. When a young kid asks his mom who Riggan is supposed to be, his mom replies, “he used to be Birdman.” That’s a burn for ole Riggan. He didn’t used to be anything. He is what he is, which is a person, Riggan Thomson, an artist, a man, a human being. He wants recognition not for what he once portrayed but for what he can due now in the present, and for some reason he saw this play as his best option. So he gets his best friend and lawyer Jake (Zach Galifianakis) to help him produce this big play and when the movie starts he is just getting ready for previews, which are the dress rehearsal performances in front of paying crowds leading up to opening night.Continue Reading …