Michael Keaton, Ed Norton and Emma Stone all simply super in the uniquely brilliant Birdman

IT’S the movie everyone’s talking about. So just how good is Birdman? Very, very good, says Leigh Paatsch.

Birdman (MA15+)

Director: Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu (Babel)

Starring: Michael Keaton, Emma Stone, Edward Norton, Naomi Watts, Zach Galifianakis.

Rating: 4.5 stars

If the only way is up, he’s going to have to wing it

You will know exactly where you stand with Birdman once you catch a glimpse of how its protagonist, ex-movie star Riggan Thomson (Michael Keaton) is sitting in the opening scene.

That’s him meditating in his dressing room in preparation for a testing day of rehearsals for a new play.

That’s also him hovering in midair, almost a metre above the floor.

Welcome, then, to the obliquely unsettling and serenely strange world of Birdman, a film quite unlike any other in recent memory.

Opinions are guaranteed to be passionately divided about how high Birdman should ultimately be flying in our overall estimation.

However, in terms of both sheer thematic ambition and laser-sharp creative execution, the production just has to be applauded for going for broke at all times.

The star of a slyly shapeshifting show is the long-forgotten actor Michael Keaton, who once upon a time was the biggest name in movies when he headed up the blockbuster Batman franchise.

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Life imitates art ... Michael Keaton in Birdman.

Keaton’s own real-life career trajectory — which saw him all but disappear after hanging up the Bat-suit — very much indexes the past, present and future of the character he plays here.

Riggan used to be the star of a series of hit action movies where he played an airborne hero known as Birdman. All that fame messed with his head and nuked his personal life, so Riggan deliberately vanished into a wilderness of his own making.

Now, almost a generation later, Riggan is ready for his return to the big time. However, the big time may not be ready for him.

The setting of Birdman — and how it is covered in a sequence of long and mind-bending tracking shots by Gravity cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezski — becomes crucial to our understanding of Riggan’s plight.

The action takes place entirely in and around the Broadway theatre that will host the great Riggan comeback. The cast and crew of the play are continually clamouring for Riggan’s attention. While he has the starring role, he is also footing the bill as producer.

As opening night draws near, the stress is getting to Riggan. And no one can get to him at the very time his guidance is needed most.

Put up your dukes ... Michael Keaton and a scene stealing Edward Norton.

For Riggan has retreated to his “safe” psychological place, a trippy state that can often trigger some alarming out-of-body experiences.

Trippy is very much the operative word when it comes to Birdman. Keaton’s incisive, yet insanity-laced portrayal of Riggan demands we journey across some challenging terrain inside this man’s addled head.

Whether you can go the distance or not will come down to your own state of mind at the time of viewing. What Keaton is up to here definitely issues some harsh demands. However, the pay-off is well worth sticking around for.

It must also be mentioned that as impacting as Keaton’s performance undoubtedly proves to be, the back-up he draws from an impeccably-cast support ensemble (led by Emma Stone, Naomi Watts and a scene-stealing Edward Norton as a manic method actor) is never less than crucial.

Birdman screens in advance previews Friday through Sunday, and opens in general release from Thursday Jan 15.

Originally published as Michael Keaton, Ed Norton and Emma Stone all simply super in the uniquely brilliant Birdman