Film Review: Changeling

Changeling
Directed by Clint Eastwood
Released October 24, 2008

Clint Eastwood’s latest film is possibly his strongest in recent years, transplanting the devastating drama of “Mystic River” and “Million Dollar Baby” to the 1920s and improving upon the end result. The story is thoroughly interesting, and even though it’s a lengthy 2 hours and 20 minutes, it doesn’t feel too long, because every new direction is just as engaging as the previous one. The costumes and sets are a wonder to look at, and Eastwood’s token simple score is perfect for the film. It’s reminiscent most of “Gone Baby Gone,” and it handles the powerful nature of its content extremely well, just as that film did. Angelina Jolie truly is a great actress (last year’s “A Mighty Heart” should not have resulted in an Oscar snub) and she’s a terrific choice for the role of the grieving mother Christine Collins. John Malkovich, in a tragically small role, is excellent as a police-hating preacher who fights to help Collins expose their misconduct. Jeffrey Donovan, master of all accents on “Burn Notice,” is a fine addition to this cast as the police detective so determined to be right that he’ll sacrifice the truth to accomplish it. Overall, it’s a film with few flaws that’s entirely fascinating and stunningly executed. Mixed reviews are a shame since this really is one of the best movies of the year.

A-