Review - Changeling
CHANGELING (15)
Director: Clint Eastwood
Starring: Angelina Jolie, John Malkovich, Jeffrey Donovan
Run time: 141 minutes
IN LIFE, all great artists seem to fade as they get older.
Musicians, actors and authors all seem to struggle to recall the power and impact of their early work, leading to fans being disappointed and critics being left unmoved.
In the film industry, for example, Robert De Niro was hailed as the most talented actor in the business in the 1970s and 80s, but the fact remains that he has not given anything approaching a decent performance since 1995's Heat, and has had instead rested on his laurels, refusing to push himself as he once did.
The great songwriters of the 20th century have also apparently burned themselves out. For all we see of Paul McCartney in the newspapers these days, you have to go back almost 30 years to find a classic song by him, and the song writing form he showed in his 1960s heyday seems to have all but evaporated.
With this in mind, it is shocking to look at the recent directorial output of a certain Mr Clint Eastwood, aged 78.
This decade has seen him produce at least two masterworks (Mystic River and Million Dollar Baby), and with this month's Changeling, starring Angelina Jolie, he has added a third to the list.
Perhaps Clint is making up for the fact that he got into the directing game late and did not helm his first film until he was in his 40s, but even so, to be in this kind of form and approaching 80 is a phenomenal achievement.
Telling the true story of Christine Collins, whose battle to find her child in 1920 Los Angeles saw her take on the city's corrupt police force, the film is clearly in the running for the 2009 Oscars.
Jolie is fantastic in the role, which is by far and way her best performance to date, and sterling support comes from John Malkovich as the clergyman who helps her in her fight.
The film also makes an interesting companion piece to Eastwood's Oscar winning Million Dollar Baby, with its themes of a woman trying to beat a male dominated system, and in time it will surely come to be viewed with the same classic status as that film.
Although it is still early in the battle for next year's Oscars, Angelina Jolie must be in the running for this performance, and you would not bet against Eastwood picking up yet another gong for his directing.
To talk with excitement about the next film from a director who will probably be 80 by the time his next work comes out seems odd, but with Eastwood in this kind of form, there is not a film fan around who would not be.
Verdict: 5 out of 5
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Do you know who Paul McCartney is??
His 'Memory Almost Full' album sold more copies in the US than any of his other studio albums.
He has been a huge success with the critics for his work as 'The Fireman'.
ALSO - He writes contemporary orchestral works including oratorios, chorals and solo piano works which he still continues to do so today and is always met with success.
If you were searching for an old wash out to compare Eastwood to - there are millions - Macca ain't one!!