Review of Birdy (1984) by Marcus W — 20 Feb 2012

Birdy. What an interesting character. One of the most aggravating things about starting out with the film is trying to nail down his character. He wasn't talking, so why did he suddenly decide to start talking? Why is he just hanging out in the tree? Is his obsessions with birds going to be any more than just a flat obsession to give the film a quirky edge? Matthew Modine plays the character Birdy like he was born to play the role.

There is so much compassion he gives the character. Whether he is silent in the hospital, or naked with the birds, we always feel something for him. He might be strange, but he's so lovable. I know that I wanted the entire time for him to find some sort of happiness.

What was really great about the character was the fact that his parents are normal. His father is a janitor at his school and his mother is a little nuts about baseballs flying into their yard. Neither parent is too harsh on Birdy.

They just want him to be happy. So we come to the conclusion that Birdy wants to be a bird because that's just who he is. He wants the freedom of flying. At one point he sees the baby birds being hatched and says they fly not because of their wings, but because they know they can.

I think more could have been fleshed out here. I get that he's not like everyone else just because that's who he is. It's an interesting statement to make. However, I still felt like something was missing.

And I thought it was silly that Birdy and Al were played by Nicolas Cage and Matthew Modine when they first met. Al was definitely acting like he was either just starting high school or maybe a little younger.

It was funny to see him whine about getting the ball back. It also would have helped showing the progression of their relationship. As Al gets older he becomes more frustrated about not getting sex, while Birdy is moving closer to his love with birds that he doesn't care about sex.

This leads to their eventual separation. The film makes a truthful observation, but it's nothing we haven't seen in war films before. When Birdy goes to Vietnam he sees the bombing of a forest and birds flying away.

This destroys him. How could people act this way? Better shut himself up and let society live without him. Al tries to tell him that's no way to live. They can be together and leave everyone, but he can't live in that mental institution hooked on drugs.

Nothing new, but still a good way to put it with this strange character. And the ending is hilarious. It has a good sense of humor about itself when you see Birdy jump. You think he has finally killed himself, but nope, there is just a lower ledge he jumped to.

Birdy is a decent film, but some things seem to drag and play out a little stiff. I still enjoyed it.