Changeling: Movie Review

Changeling: Movie Review

Rating 8/10
Cast: Angelina Jolie, John Malkovich, Jeffrey Donovan
Director: Clint Eastwood
A film from Clint Eastwood is always a reason to sit up and pay attention.
Despite now edging closer to 80, Eastwood shows no sign of losing his touch - Changeling is one of the most compelling films of 2009; by turns it's horrifying and engrossing - and the fact it's based on a true story makes it even more stomach churning.
Angelina Jolie gives a stunning performance as Christine Collins, a 1920s era Los Angeles telephone exchange supervisor.
One Saturday she's called into work and is forced to leave her son Walter behind - despite promising she'd take him to the cinema.
Upon her return, she suffers every mother's worst nightmare and can't locate her son. Worse still, the police refuse to come out saying missing persons are only investigated after a full 24 hours has passed.
Things get even worse for Collins when five months later, the LAPD - in the form of Jeffrey Donovan's Captain - claims they've found Walter.
Her initial relief turns to shock when the boy they return to her turns out not to be the real Walter - and he insists she is his mother and he's changed only because of the time he's been away.
Collins continues to insist the police have it wrong - her campaign is picked up by a broadcasting local activist Reverend Briegleb (played with clipped tones by John Malkovich) whose crusade is to expose the corruption of the Los Angeles Department.
To reveal any more of the twists and turns this film takes would be to majorly spoil what was a truly horrific case and would lose some of the shock impact director Eastwood has so masterly crafted (and anyway, if you're that desperate to know how it goes, there's always Google and Wikipedia)
Jolie is astounding as Collins - from pictures I've seen of Christine Collins, Angelina has captured the look to a tee (along with some excellent 1920s costuming).
But Jolie's performance is about much more than looks - Collins goes through such a series of mental and physical beatings and yet not once does her restrained air slip. Jolie's trademark lips are splattered throughout with red lipstick and is the only sign of life in her sunken sallow face as she endures horror after horror in her hunt for missing son Walter and the truth of what happened to him.
However, it's her turn throughout which finally demonstrates some of the star quality we've lost sight of the more she's splattered across the tabloids. It's a tour de force performance which saw her receive some Oscar recognition - but you have to co credit director Clint Eastwood.
He brings out the best of his actors - from an electrifying (if brief) turn from John Malkovich to the unbelievably repugnant performance from Jeffrey Donovan (who you'll know from TV series Burn Notice) whose piggy eyes exude menace and a reptilian lack of sympathy.
Like any investigation into a missing person, there are plenty of false ends to the film - just as you think it's about to finish, Eastwood pulls another emotional sucker punch and you're slap bang back in the middle of the action.

For a film which has such an horrific premise, Changeling ends on an extraordinarily upbeat tone - and showcases the best Eastwood - as well as Jolie - has to offer the celluloid world.