I've always been a fan of Nicholas Cage and even though the man sometimes seems to make bad choices when it comes to new scripts, I still see him as one of the best actors Hollywood has to offer. I know several people who don't agree with me, but in my opinion, his performance makes even the worst movie worth a try. Not that it always saves them, but it sure helped me to sit through some of them. However, in this case that isn't even necessary. Ever since I saw "Birdy" for the first time, I am a fan of its story.
When Al Columbato meets Birdy for the first time, he thinks he's a bit of a weirdo. Birdy isn't all that interested in social contacts with other children or young adolescents. All he wants is to play with his pigeons. But after a while Al and Birdy become good friends who have a lot of fun together, especially when they go after some new pigeons for Birdy or when try to fly themselves,... But then the Vietnam war starts and it doesn't take long before both men are sent to this far Asian country. When they return they both have changed. Especially Birdy is in an awful state. Suffering from severe shell-shock, he is in a hospital for mental patients, where he sits in his room without speaking a word while acting like a bird. When Al is asked to help with his therapy by trying to talk to him, he does his best, but even he doesn't seem capable to penetrate into Birdy's isolated world...
I know that I've once said that Hollywood doesn't seem to be able to make original drama's which are a lot better than the average TV-movie, but I admit that that was an exaggeration. "Birdy" is a very good and really original movie which can stand a test with movies like for instance the English drama "Spider". Not only is the story very good, so is the directing and the acting. Even though I've heard of him before, I can't say that I've ever seen another movie of Alan Parker, but this "Birdy" sure proves that the man must be a good director. Also very interesting in this movie were the very young Nicolas Cage, John Harkins - who has more often played in TV-movies and series than in other movies, but who did a good job in this one - and Matthew Modine who hasn't played any big role in an important movie since the late 1980's.
The only problem many people might have with this movie is the fact that it is said to be a war movie, but doesn't really show much of the action typical for such movies. It's a part of the story of course, but it isn't as important as some people might want. Also the fact that it is a - for Hollywood at least - quite unusual drama, might cost it quite some viewers. Personally I didn't have any problem with that, I'm already used to watch the 'not-so-average' movie and I must say that this one still stands after all those years. That's why I give it a 7.5/10, maybe even an 8/10.
When Al Columbato meets Birdy for the first time, he thinks he's a bit of a weirdo. Birdy isn't all that interested in social contacts with other children or young adolescents. All he wants is to play with his pigeons. But after a while Al and Birdy become good friends who have a lot of fun together, especially when they go after some new pigeons for Birdy or when try to fly themselves,... But then the Vietnam war starts and it doesn't take long before both men are sent to this far Asian country. When they return they both have changed. Especially Birdy is in an awful state. Suffering from severe shell-shock, he is in a hospital for mental patients, where he sits in his room without speaking a word while acting like a bird. When Al is asked to help with his therapy by trying to talk to him, he does his best, but even he doesn't seem capable to penetrate into Birdy's isolated world...
I know that I've once said that Hollywood doesn't seem to be able to make original drama's which are a lot better than the average TV-movie, but I admit that that was an exaggeration. "Birdy" is a very good and really original movie which can stand a test with movies like for instance the English drama "Spider". Not only is the story very good, so is the directing and the acting. Even though I've heard of him before, I can't say that I've ever seen another movie of Alan Parker, but this "Birdy" sure proves that the man must be a good director. Also very interesting in this movie were the very young Nicolas Cage, John Harkins - who has more often played in TV-movies and series than in other movies, but who did a good job in this one - and Matthew Modine who hasn't played any big role in an important movie since the late 1980's.
The only problem many people might have with this movie is the fact that it is said to be a war movie, but doesn't really show much of the action typical for such movies. It's a part of the story of course, but it isn't as important as some people might want. Also the fact that it is a - for Hollywood at least - quite unusual drama, might cost it quite some viewers. Personally I didn't have any problem with that, I'm already used to watch the 'not-so-average' movie and I must say that this one still stands after all those years. That's why I give it a 7.5/10, maybe even an 8/10.