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Changeling

  • 20082008
  • RR
  • 2h 21m
IMDb RATING
7.8/10
258K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
3,803
1,598
Angelina Jolie and Gattlin Griffith in Changeling (2008)
Clint Eastwood directs Angelina Jolie in The Changeling, a drama in which a mother's prayer for her kidnapped son to return home is answered, though it doesn't take long for her to suspect the boy who comes back is not hers.
Play trailer2:16
1 Video
99+ Photos
BiographyCrimeDrama
Grief-stricken mother Christine Collins (Angelina Jolie) takes on the L.A.P.D. to her own detriment when they try to pass off an obvious impostor as her missing child.Grief-stricken mother Christine Collins (Angelina Jolie) takes on the L.A.P.D. to her own detriment when they try to pass off an obvious impostor as her missing child.Grief-stricken mother Christine Collins (Angelina Jolie) takes on the L.A.P.D. to her own detriment when they try to pass off an obvious impostor as her missing child.
IMDb RATING
7.8/10
258K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
3,803
1,598
    • Clint Eastwood
    • J. Michael Straczynski
  • Stars
    • Angelina Jolie
    • Colm Feore
    • Amy Ryan
    • Clint Eastwood
    • J. Michael Straczynski
  • Stars
    • Angelina Jolie
    • Colm Feore
    • Amy Ryan
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 500User reviews
    • 273Critic reviews
    • 63Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Nominated for 3 Oscars

    Videos1

    Changeling: Trailer #1
    Trailer 2:16
    Watch Changeling: Trailer #1

    Photos207

    Angelina Jolie and Devon Conti in Changeling (2008)
    Clint Eastwood, Brian Grazer, and Robert Lorenz in Changeling (2008)
    Clint Eastwood and Angelina Jolie in Changeling (2008)
    Angelina Jolie and Devon Conti in Changeling (2008)
    Angelina Jolie in Changeling (2008)
    Angelina Jolie and Jeffrey Donovan in Changeling (2008)
    Angelina Jolie and Gattlin Griffith in Changeling (2008)
    John Malkovich, Angelina Jolie, and Geoff Pierson in Changeling (2008)
    Angelina Jolie in Changeling (2008)
    Michael Kelly in Changeling (2008)
    Jason Butler Harner in Changeling (2008)
    John Malkovich in Changeling (2008)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Angelina Jolie
    Angelina Jolie
    • Christine Collins
    Colm Feore
    Colm Feore
    • Chief James E. Davis
    Amy Ryan
    Amy Ryan
    • Carol Dexter
    Gattlin Griffith
    Gattlin Griffith
    • Walter Collins
    Michelle Gunn
    Michelle Gunn
    • Sandy
    Jan Devereaux
    Jan Devereaux
    • Operator
    Erica Grant
    • Operator
    Antonia Bennett
    • Operator
    Kerri Randles
    Kerri Randles
    • Operator
    Frank Wood
    Frank Wood
    • Ben Harris
    Morgan Eastwood
    Morgan Eastwood
    • Girl on Tricycle
    Madison Hodges
    • Neighborhood Girl
    John Malkovich
    John Malkovich
    • Rev. Gustav Briegleb
    Devon Conti
    • Arthur Hutchins
    Ric Sarabia
    Ric Sarabia
    • Man at Diner
    J.P. Bumstead
    • Cook
    Jeffrey Donovan
    Jeffrey Donovan
    • Captain J.J. Jones
    Debra Christofferson
    Debra Christofferson
    • Police Matron at Train
      • Clint Eastwood
      • J. Michael Straczynski
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Screenwriter J. Michael Straczynski first learned of the story of Christine Collins from an unnamed source at Los Angeles City Hall. The source had stumbled across case files regarding the Wineville Chicken Coop Murders amongst other discarded documents scheduled for destruction. Straczynski took the files and became obsessed with the case, doing extensive research over the course of a year. He tried to make it into a television project, but never found a solid way to do that. Virtually every event depicted in this movie appears as cited in legal documents, with dialogue often taken verbatim from court transcripts. Straczynski wrote his first draft of the screenplay in only eleven days.
    • Goofs
      Detective Ybarra uses the term "serial killer," coined by FBI Special Agent Robert K. Ressler in the 1970s.
    • Quotes

      [last lines]

      Christine Collins: Three boys made a run for it that night, detective, and if one got out, then maybe either or both of the other two did too. Maybe Walter's out there having the same fears that he did. Afraid to come home and identify himself, or afraid to get in trouble. But either way, it gives me something I didn't have before today.

      Detective Lester Ybarra: What's that?

      Christine Collins: Hope.

    • Crazy credits
      The black-and-white Universal logo used in the 1940s opens the film.
    • Connections
      Featured in The 14th Annual Critics' Choice Awards (2009)

    User reviews500

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    9/10
    Interesting period piece
    Watching this film is like taking a look back in time. Everything is picture perfect, the beautiful automobiles, the red electric street cars, the telephones, the switchboard station with roller-skating supervisors, the house appliances, and the outstanding clothing, from dresses to hats to police uniforms, everything is meticulously detailed. The story, which we are told is true, is complex and multifaceted. Angelina Jolie, who plays Christine Collins, gives an outstanding performance as a single mother who returns home from work to find that her son is missing. This puts into motion a series of events that exposes the reality of what Los Angeles society was really like in the late 1920's. Corrupt Police, uncaring and self absorbed mental health professionals and the basic premise that people left to their own ambitions will do anything to secure their own prosperity. Although this paints a bleak picture of the human condition, the film show that the actions of a few good men can make a world of difference, John Malkovich as Reverend Gustav Briegleb, is determined to expose the corrupt Police in his radio talk show, Michael Kelly as detective Lester Ybarra, although hampered by his superiors, uncovers what really happened to the boy and the unlikely hero, a powerful attorney who takes her case pro-bono comes to her rescue. If indeed this is a true story, then to see these people stand up to the powers that be is a ray of hope to all of us that there were people who were strong and principled. We can only hope that there are still people like that out there today.
    helpful•215
    43
    • tomrito
    • Nov 2, 2008

    FAQ7

    • Is "Changeling" based on a book?
    • Upon which events is this film based?
    • What is a "changeling"?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • October 31, 2008 (United States)
      • United States
      • Universal (Germany)
      • English
    • Also known as
    • Filming locations
      • Santa Fe Railroad Depot - 1170 W. 3rd Street, San Bernardino, California, USA
    • Production companies
      • Imagine Entertainment
      • Malpaso Productions
      • Relativity Media
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

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    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • 2 hours 21 minutes
      • Color
      • SDDS
      • Dolby Digital
      • DTS

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