"Cake"

It has taken me two days to process this film.
This is the story of a woman by the name of Claire. Claire is in chronic physical and psychic pain as a result of a car accident that claimed the life of her five-year-old son. To complicate matters further, Claire has become physically and emotionally dependant on opiate pain medication. Claire is an addict. She is played brilliantly by Jennifer Aniston. Be warned: This is not your "Friends" Jennifer Aniston. This is your "The Good Girl" Jennifer Aniston. She is raw, and vulnerable, and angry. She presents with suicidal ideation while grasping onto life as it crumbles around her. She embodies the life of an addict with all of it's frustrations and obstacles.
Holding Claire up throughout the film is the gifted Adriana Barraza as her maid and caregiver. She, by turns, saves Claire's life and continues to stoke the fire of the addiction. Under the word "co-dependant" in the dictionary is a photograph of this character.
Rounding out the cast are Felicty Huffman as a counselor in Claire's pain management group, Anna Kendrick as the ghost of a woman in the pain management group who killed herself, Sam Worthington as the dead woman's widower, Chris Messina as Claire's heartbroken ex-husband, an William H. Macy as the equally grief-stricken man who caused Claire's car accident.
This movie would be a brutal roller-coaster ride for anyone, but for a recovering pill addict it was something more. Rather than trigger my cravings, it made me grateful to not have to live like that anymore. It made me grateful to be able to work as a counselor and to be there for the addict who still suffers. It made me grateful for my life.
If you choose to take this ride, please know that the end is so worth the journey. It is incredibly hopeful. I regret not a minute of the excursion.

"Birdman"

When we rented the DVD of this movie last night, we asked the video store owner if he had enjoyed it. He told us that when he watches movies he just wants to have the actors make him believe in the story they are telling. He has no desire to know what is going on behind the scenes.

Well, if you, too, are the type of person who does not wish to see the puppet strings, this movie is not for you. However, if you are a theatre geek/comic book connoisseur/human nature observer, then please by all means watch this film!

The story line is original, fresh, and moving. The acting is impeccable. Every performance is memorable, but Michael Keaton especially  embraces the character of Riggin, with all of his beautiful flaws. Keaton was not afraid to show himself as the aging actor he is, and he was equally unafraid to embody the flaws of an actors ego. He shows us that to be human is to be a rich tapestry of good and bad alike.

Edward Norton proves once again what an amazing actor he is. This is his best work since "Fight Club". Just like his character in "Primal Fear" he is able to convincingly wear two faces, and he makes us want to see more of both.

Emma Stone is far and away my favorite young actress (to be fair, she shares this honor with Jennifer Lawrence), and in this film she proves why this is so. As an addict just out of rehab, struggling with her demons and trying to navigate the dysfunctional worlds of the theatre and her less-than-perfect family, the woman is clarifying in her intensity.

Naomi Watts, Zach Galifanakis, Andrea Riseborough, and Amy Ryan round out the cast and add spice and other assorted flavors to this amazing stew.

If you know and love theatre, see this. If you an an aficionado of super hero movies, see this. If you are a human being, see this. You will be rewarded with a look behind the scenes of these characters-both literally and figuratively- and if you are lucky, you will be rewarded with a look into yourself. 

Damn, I want to do another play...