Changeling

On a Scale of 1 to 10, with 10 Being the Best

4

Courtesy of Buzzfeed

Plot: A woman's child goes missing and when she reports the incident and the police can't find the child, the mother is blamed. Christine Collins is threatened, given a fake child, and even institutionalized by the LAPD and that isn't even the whole story. The movie is based on true events (I recommend looking up the whole story) but is very long and the end is unsatisfying. I was disappointed that there were added scenes to make the story more intriguing because I thought the real story was enough on its own. The real parts of the story is powerful and so shocking that I had to pause the movie at one point to collect my thoughts. The idea and acting were there but the execution was not. 

Characters/Actors of Note:

Angelina Jolie playing Christine Collins: I have seen my fair share of Ms. Jolie in drama films before and once again she hits it out of the park. Jolie knows what emotions should be in which scenes and how to handle the awkwardness of having a fake child. The truthfulness in the acting is what is needed the most for this film and I thought it was well done. *Spoiler* The only issue I had with Jolie wasn't her fault but did affect her acting. The director and writers of the film decided to add that Christine Collins went to the execution of a kidnapper/murderer and confronted the man in jail. It seemed out of place because it was...it didn't happen in reality. I wish that the creators of the story would have stuck to the facts instead of adding "intrigue." The fictional scenes made the acting less powerful because it took me from being, "Oh, that's awful what happened to them," to "Why would she do that?" 

Jeffery Donovan playing Captain J. J. Jones: Who wouldn't go finding a child, institutionalize an innocent woman, and tell other officers not to work on a missing person's case so they wouldn't look stupid? That would be Captain J. J. Jones, world class jerk of stupidity. Mr. Donovan plays his character as high strung, impatient, and above all ego driven person who is not used to be challenged. I thought the amount of cruelty and injustice that Mr. Donovan shows was well balanced and believable. Often villain characters go way too big and drastic but Jones' behavior was on point. 

Music: The music is an earmark for an Eastwood film with its jazz-like sound. It's often slow with not many instruments, usually just a piano and a guitar. Also, every single song sounds just like the next song. It was rather boring and I feel that the movie would have been the same if it was not included at all. Thumbs down here. 

Camera Work/Cinematography: The film has sharp lines and contrast which is a signature mark for an Eastwood film. I was surprised to see how much bright white light was used on the actors in the film. Often that can wash them out but it mostly made them look pale but was able to bring out contrast. It also created many shadows on the faces and the rest of the set. This could have been done to represent the mystery of what happened to the son or the darkness that Christine Collins felt. I was not impressed with the choices and wish that there was more creativity done here. 

RECAP: 

The story is interesting and the acting was on point, however the extra scenes made the actors appear fake. The music was done poorly and the cinematography could have been more creative. I would stress that most of the story is accurate and that makes it fascinating and a bit disturbing to watch. I would say watch it if you are interested in the Christine Collins case but don't watch it for entertainment reasons. 

Courtesy of Behance

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