Changeling (2008)

Director:

Clint Eastwood

Writer (WGA):

J. Michael Straczynski (written by)

Release Date:

31 October 2008 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | History | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

To find her son, she did what no one else dared.

Plot:

A grief-stricken mother takes on the LAPD to her own detriment when it stubbornly tries to pass off an obvious impostor as her missing child, while also refusing to give up hope that she will find him one day.

Plot Keywords:

Police | Ranch | Missing Child | Corruption | Murder

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 4 wins & 32 nominations

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Angelina Jolie	...	Christine Collins
Gattlin Griffith	...	Walter Collins
Michelle Gunn	...	Sandy
Michael Kelly	...	Detective Lester Ybarra
Jan Devereaux	...	Operator
Erica Grant	...	Operator
Antonia Bennett	...	Operator
Kerri Randles	...	Operator
Frank Wood	...	Ben Harris
Morgan Eastwood	...	Girl on Tricycle
Madison Hodges	...	Neighborhood Girl
John Malkovich	...	Rev. Gustav Briegleb
Colm Feore	...	Chief James E. Davis
Devon Conti	...	Arthur Hutchins
Ric Sarabia	...	Man at Diner

Also Known As:

MPAA:

Rated R for some violent and disturbing content, and language.

Runtime:

141 min

Country:

USA

Language:

Portuguese | English

Color:

Black and White (opening and end sequence) | Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

USA:R (certificate #44429) | UK:15 | Canada:13+ (Québec) | Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba/Ontario) | Ireland:16 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Australia:MA | Finland:K-15 | Denmark:15 | Netherlands:16 | Iceland:16 | Sweden:15 | Japan:PG-12 | South Korea:18 | Czech Republic:15 | Singapore:NC-16 | New Zealand:R16 | Portugal:M/12 (Qualidade) | Brazil:16 | Philippines:R-18 (MTRCB) | Norway:15 | Germany:12 (f) | Hong Kong:IIB | Taiwan:PG-12 | Argentina:13 | Peru:14 | Austria:14 | France:U (with warning) | Mexico:B | Singapore:M18 (DVD rating)

Filming Locations:

All Saint's Episcopal Church - 132 N. Euclid Avenue, Pasadena, California, USA

Company:

Imagine Entertainment

Trivia:

Shipped to some theaters under the name "Nomad". (In the Star Trek original series episode "Star Trek: The Changeling (#2.3)" (1967), from 1967, the name of the space probe was Nomad.)

Goofs:

Continuity: When Sanford Clark is first looking at the photographs of the missing boys, the picture on the bottom of the stack is of a 9-year-old boy. When he eventually gets to the final picture, the age written on the photo is 10.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Christine Collins:Walter, honey. Time to wake up.
Walter Collins:Just ten more minutes...
Christine Collins:Sorry, sport. You can sleep in tomorrow, that's what Saturdays are for.

Movie Connections:

References The Circus (1928)

A fine film, Clint Eastwood has done it again!

Clint Eastwood, the master of making depressing films now makes his trilogy: Mystic River, Million Dollar Baby, and now Changeling. Based of the horrific chicken coop murders from the 1920's in California, we get a deeper insight into one of the mothers of the victims, Christine Collins who is portrayed by Angelina Jolie, queen of the never ending tears. I'm just playing, she does a terrific job and is just so heart breaking to watch her story on film, she gives Christine a lot of character and depth. The film is even made a certain way, a lot of dark colors, it seems as if it was made in old Hollywood, which was a very intelligent way of setting the mood and time of the film. We have some very fine performances pretty much from everyone in this movie. The one flaw I did feel is that the script does have some lines that are a little over done, a little too dramatic, but it really works for the film and story.

Christine Collins is a single mother in the 1920's, she's a strong woman who is even ahead of some of the men in her line of work as an operator manager. But she's so busy with work that she tries to make time with her son, Walter. One day they are going to go to the movies, but Christine has to go to work, she says she'll meet Walter right back at home, she's late of course and when she gets home, Walter is missing. She calls the police, but they say she has to wait 24 hours. After a few months, the police tell her they've found her son, she couldn't be happier... that is until she sees a boy who is not her son. But the police will not fess up and admit they messed up, so instead of helping Christine, they treat her horribly and throw in her in an insane asylum and quite looking for her son, but the town's Rev. Gustav Briegleb will not give up and expose the police for the horrible people they are and will do anything to help Christine find her son.

Changeling is a great film, one of the best of 2008, you know this is going to be a big contender for Oscar season. I really enjoyed this film, I have to admit it had me in tears, all that this poor woman went through to find her son, the pain and mental mind, well you know the f word, that the police put her through, I felt so horrible for her. Jeffrey Donovan just plays the ultimate jerk who just keeps playing gaslight on Christine Collins forcing a child who is not her son down her throat. Although I think this film could have been a good comedy if they gave her an Asian baby or something and try to convince her then that that's her son, lol, OK, that was so bad, sorry. But seriously, this is a great film, I do highly recommend that you take the chance to see it in the theater if you can.

10/10