Changeling (2008)
Genre: Drama | History | Mystery | Thriller
Directed by: Clint Eastwood
Rated: US: R, UK: 15
Running Time: 141 minutes
Some stories come and go and some some stays with you forever, Changeling is one of those stories. The agonizing pain of a mother who can go to any extent to find her own son and to fight for the truth that the child the police found did not belong to her when the police itself is trying to prove that the child is hers and that she is delusional. And what makes it more heart touching is - it is based on a true story.
The power packed performance by Angelina Jolie and beautifully crafted by Clint Eastwood himself, Changeling is a story of love, grief, belief, faith, hope, strength and what not. When you start believing that it is in fact a true story, you automatically find yourself connected to it. It feels like Clint Eastwood has put his heart and soul to create this heart touching film, even, to my surprise, the background score is done by Eastwood himself who, along with Ron Howard, Brian Grazer and Robert Lorenz, is also a producer of the film. J. Michael Straczynski, the writer of Changeling has done some deep research, according to him - he drew 95% of the script from around 6,000 pages of documentation and it took him years to research the historical records. And his hard work has been paid of really well as the script is really a strong part of this film.
Changeling is based on real life incident connected to "Wineville Chicken Coop Murders" in 1928 where, about 20 children were slain by a barbaric psycopath killer Gordon Stewart Northcott. A mother in Los Angeles, comes home one day and finds her boy missing. She files missing report and after few months she is informed by the LAPD that the boy has been found. On the day of reunion she realizes that the boy they found is not her child but is an imposter. She tries to prove that the boy is not hers to city officials who surprisingly turns their back and prove that she is delusional. But her fight does not stop here and does she moves heaven & earth to prove herself right or is she really delusional and what it has to do with Wineville Chicken Coop Murders makes the story so interesting that you would not want to leave your couch until you know what is going to happen next.
Changeling probes womanhood, motherhood, corruption, trauma, and much more. Angelina Jolie's emotional appearance is heart melting, cast ensemble is good and the story is strong. All in all it is a film that will impact your mind and will make you ponder over it.
My Verdict: Changeling teaches a lesson - 'You never start a fight, but you always finish it.' No, no, do not learn that lesson from the film...lol. It actually teaches that no matter what, if you believe that what you believe is the real truth, than no matter, if the whole world is against you, you fight for it and prove that you are right. The emotional outcome of Changeling and powerful performance by Angelina Jolie makes this movie a must to see. And when you know that this is a true story, it will come to you as a surprise that 1928 was a turmoil for Los Angeles. The only drawback of this film is its slow pace - as a Clint Eastwood directed movie use to be. Maybe it is because Eastwood did not want to miss the emotional thread this movie carries. But Changeling is for me, one of the finest movie of 2008. Its a Keeper.
Why See?: True story, strong plot, well acted, surprising elements.
Why Not?: Nothing particular but it has a slow pace.
Rating: 8/10
Watch Trailer:
*Courtesy TrailersPlayground
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