This film is astounding and visionary. The director manages to make the staging of a Broadway play: true to life, and surreal, sometimes hilarious, tragic, meaningful, ridiculous, loving, joyous, creative, grueling, cruel and insane. The one-camera viewpoint made me feel like I was in the room spying on their private lives, as if I was "one of them."
I travel to NYC every chance I get to go to the theatre, so as a theatre-goer / lover, the backstage view of what it takes to procure, finance, cast, rehearse and direct a stage play was enlightening.
Every performance is great. Although I have enjoyed many previous film performances by Michael Keaton, Edward Norton, Naomi Watts, Andrea Riseborough and Emma Stone – in this film I saw them fly (no pun intended) A great "cameo" from great British actress Lindsay Duncan who in real life has graced the Broadway stage for several seasons, who plays the world's most vile theatre critic superbly.
I am baffled by the negative reviews I read on this site (and others) I can only say that this is probably the best American film I will see in 2014 (and I see 1-5 films per week) I predict it will be nominated and will win multiple Oscars and that Alejandro González Iñárritu will be admired and studied for his (consistently) visionary films.
Go and see it with no preconceived notions and enjoy the ride.
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