As far as bizzarre true life stories go, Changeling is perhaps the weirdest I've seen since Big Top Pee-Wee. Hm? You're saying Big Top Pee-Wee WASN'T a true story? Yeah right, and I bet he didn't go on a cross country journey to find his missing bicycle, either! You can't fool me.
Changeling is Clint Eastwood's latest directorial effort, as he turns his attention to the Wineville Chicken Coop Murders of 1928. Angelina Jolie plays single mother Christine Collins. In March of that year, her son Walter Collins vanished while staying home alone one day. Five months later, a boy approximately Walter's age turns up. The LAPD, which was rife with corruption and negative press at the time,informs Christine that they've found her son. However, when the two are reunited in front a large gathering of the press, Christine discovers that the boy is not Walter. The LAPD insist to her that he is her son despite her insistence to the contrary. Christine is convinced to take the boy home for awhile to get "reacquainted", but she remains absolute in her belief that her son is still out there somewhere.
It's a remarkable set of circumstances and truly befuddling to watch as she confronts the Police chief repeatedly only to be rebuffed, rebuked, and downright humiliated at every turn. The police come up with a myriad of reasons why the boy is Walter, even when confronted by staggering evidence against their claim. In order to avoid embarrassment and finally shut Collins up, they have her shipped to a mental health facility unilaterally.
This film is ostensibly about the Chicken Coop Murders of 1928, but Eastwood's interest clearly isn't into dealing with the fine details of that story. Walter Collins is assumed to be one of the 20 or so boys believed to have been held and killed at a chicken coop by Gordon Northcott and his nephew Sanford Clark. Eastwood chooses to focus on the tribulations of Collins, forced to fight through police corruption and female disempowerment just to have someone look for her missing son. She gets help in her crusade from a local Reverend, played by John Malkovich, who uses the power of his radio broadcast and the media to protect Christine.
There are some really good elements to this film, not the least of which is the acting. Jolie is superb here, playing Christine as a tough, stoic figure fighting to prove and preserve her sanity against an insane establishment. It reminds me of her performance in A Mighty Heart in which she plays a similar role. If this movie has anything going for it, it's the sheer absurdity of the story. It's unbelievable to watch this mother being told that she doesn't know her own children, and then to watch the police smear her so publicly and question not only her sanity but her very morals. There were plenty of mouths agape in the theater, trust me.
What I found most interesting of all was the dynamic between Collins and the faux-Walter. She wants to do her civic duty and help this boy who looks as if he needs it, but she's torn because this same boy is lying to her and the rest of the world by insisting that he is Walter. I wish Eastwood had spent more of his time exploring this relationship rather than veering off in the direction he does. The time spent in the mental health hospital are particularly painful. I'm sure that the real life situation was similar to the way it's portrayed here but I still found it cliched. Plenty of screaming, staggering deranged people staring blankly. All the doctors were evil and brutal in their handling of patients. I couldn't wait for it to end. Also, we never really find out much about the murders or the murderer himself. We get a few minutes here and there, but little is revealed about Northcott. Also, Reverend Bliegleb is a completely one-note character, and not even the great John Malkovich can breath life into him. We get no insight into why he's being such a crusader for this cause in particular.
I'm not one to criticize Eastood's choices, but this felt like a film outside of his usual purview. I guess it's odd for me to say that considering the wide and varied resume Eastwood can lay claim to. But this one just does not hold the emotion or realism of his other films, which is most strange because this one is a completely true story. Maybe that's the problem. Once the shock of the situation has passed, there's really not much more here to hold on to. Still, it's a decent enough film and worthy of some praise for Jolie's performance alone.
6/10
