SummaryBird, a film burnished with the magic of that 1946 concert encounter between legend and future legend and honored with an Academy Award for Best Sound in its spellbinding recreation of a man and his music. Like jazz itself, Bird rings with counterpoints and embellishments. Past and future overlap as the film explores Yardbird's soaring skill and ... Read More
Directed By:Clint Eastwood
Written By:Joel Oliansky
Bird
Metascore
Generally Favorable
78
User score
Generally Favorable
7.1
My Score
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Metascore
Generally Favorable
93% Positive
13 Reviews
13 Reviews
7% Mixed
1 Review
1 Review
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
100
n a remarkable directorial effort, Eastwood shows a great flair for atmosphere and composition and presents a nuanced, complex, humane portrait of Parker's talents, obstacles, virtues and failings. Whitaker gives a towering performance as the tortured musical genius, and Venora is equally impressive as the independent, compassionate Chan.
88
Bird isn't an easy film, and it doesn't always make an effort to be likable. But it's a dazzler - at least as good as "Round Midnight,'' and that's saying a lot.
80
The film is as faithful to its subject as perhaps any film biography has been. As Eastwood said, Parker was a paradoxical character, both self-destructive and full of life, and the movie, simultaneously dark and exhilarating, takes that as its theme. [22 Sep 1988, p. 1]
75
At two hours and 43 minutes, Eastwood's Bird is a hypnotic, darkly photographed, loosely constructed marvel that avoids every cliche of the self-destructive-celebrity biography, a particularly remarkable achievement in that Parker played out every cliche of the self- destructive-celebrity life. [14 Oct 1988, p. C1]
75
Clint Eastwood remains a competent, rather than distinctive, film maker, but he obviously respects the material. Bird is essentially factual, and we come to understand why so many other musicians thought shooting heroin might enable them to transfer [Charlie Parker]'s genius to themselves. [26 Sept 1988, p. 4D]
70
The movie won't come clear, Eastwood has succeeded so thoroughly in communicating his love of his subject, and there's such vitality in the performances, that we walk out elated, juiced on the actors and the music.
60
You'll leave Bird's smooth flow of nightclub images, dark motel rooms and recharged Parker tracks with new respect for Eastwood the Director. But you'll also leave none the wiser about Parker the Man.
User score
Generally Favorable
71% Positive
15 Ratings
15 Ratings
19% Mixed
4 Ratings
4 Ratings
10% Negative
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
Nov 14, 2022
6
As a movie, this was way too long. While Clint wanted to show everything in detail, and that might work for a book, it did not work here. What I missed was, what lead to his drug use, what set him on this road to self-destruction?
Feb 1, 2022
5
I personally found 'Bird' - directed by Clint Eastwood - to be an absolute slog to sit through. It's an interesting story no doubt, but it's told in the most mundane and boring way possible. I didn't know anything about Charlie Parker beforehand, which is what kept that aforementioned interest there. I'm no jazz fan either, but I am always happy to listen to it when it comes up though. Despite that, I just couldn't get into the film itself. It just felt like it was 160 minutes (!) worth of the following on repeat: performance, drunk and/or depressed, performance, drunk and/or depressed etc. I didn't feel like I was learning anything about Parker and his life. I literally gave an internal cheer when the credits finally rolled around. I do enjoy Forest Whitaker as an actor and he is probably the reason I'm not rating this lower. As for the rest, I don't even recall any of them - though I'm putting that down to what I've already noted, as opposed to the cast themselves who I'm sure tried their upmost. Way too long, in short. As I said it's an intriguing person to make a film about, an around 100 minute production would've been perfect in my opinion. A shame, all in all.
Production Company:
- Warner Bros.
- The Malpaso Company
Release Date:Sep 30, 1988
Duration:2 h 41 m
Rating:R
Tagline:"There are no second acts in American lives." - F. Scott Fitzgerald
Awards
Golden Globes, USA
• 1 Win & 3 Nominations
Academy Awards, USA
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination
Sant Jordi Awards
• 3 Wins & 3 Nominations
