Steven Soderbergh: HIGH FLYING BIRD – Reviews
Steven Soderbergh’s iphone-shot (his second film to be shot with a smartphone) is released on Netflix today. But is it worth watching?
We look at the reviews and see what the general consensus is…
Henry H Barnes – The Guardian:
4/5 Stars
“A sharp and layered drama about basketball, filmed on a smartphone, is another slam dunk for both the film-maker and the platform”
Regarding filming on smartphones: “A micro-budget Netflix production shot on a smartphone, it’s a very different sports drama, but another story about an innovator upturning the order for the love of the game.”
About the look: “The film – with cinematography by Peter Andrews and editing by Mary Ann Bernard (both Steven Soderbergh aliases) – doesn’t always look beautiful. It has a cold blankness, befitting both the soullessness of its subject matter and – perhaps – its $2m budget.”
The best quote: “The rules have changed, it’s his game now.”
David Edelstein – Vulture
“High Flying Bird is an unshapely piece of storytelling — there are gaps in the plot, and it never locks into a rhythm — but that mournfulness and resentment seep into you.”
Regarding filming on smartphones: He doesn’t mention it. Which is a plus for me – it shows it doesn’t matter. The story counts.
Summing up: “the tone from the start is chill, bordering on mournful, and it’s marinated in righteous resentment.”
Brian Tallerico – Roger Ebert
3.5/4 Stars
Regarding filming on smartphones: “it adds an energy to the filmmaking of “High Flying Bird” that you can sense on-screen. You can feel the excitement that Soderbergh gets from experimenting with a new form of filmmaking.”
About the story: “The script for “High Flying Bird” by Tarell Alvin McCraney (“Moonlight”) is razor sharp…”
Summing up: “In a sense, “High Flying Bird” is about refusing to remain in limbo—about doing something to empower yourself to find success.”
Tim Grierson – Screen Daily
Regarding filming on smartphones: “Soderbergh shot High Flying Bird on an iPhone, although the effect isn’t as intentionally disorienting as it was for Unsane, where he incorporated the same technique. Still, the iPhone allows for intimacy as we watch the lightning-quick Ray use his gift for the gab to control any conversation, even as he secretly worries about his own finances and future.”
Summing up: “…although compelling ideas float through High Flying Bird, the film is neither well crafted or intellectually rigorous enough to compensate for a generally lacklustre presentation.”
Norman Wilner – Now Toronto
Regarding filming on smartphones: “Once again shooting on an iPhone – in widescreen this time – Soderbergh frames Holland as our guide through the strata of the sports world… We get to hurtle alongside him, trying to figure out what it all means and enjoying the hell out of the ride.”
Sandy Schaefer – Screen Rant
3.5/5 Stars
Regarding filming on smartphones: mentions it but other than that, doesn’t care. It’s as if .. you know .. the story is the most important thing.. not the camera.
About the look: “Soderbergh does his own part to set the film’s tone by fixing his camera on steely glass buildings and offices (where agents like Ray conduct their business), and using cool natural light to make the whole thing look and feel like it could almost be a documentary.”
Summing up: “High Flying Bird doesn’t quite manage to change ‘the game’ but, under Soderbergh and McCraney’s guidance, it certainly makes an entertaining go at it.”
Chuck Bowen – Slant
About the look: “Unsane and High Flying Bird are made up entirely of sharp angles that exude an aura of having been conceived and filmed on the fly. In these new films, Soderbergh fashions a free-form formalism that’s designed to keep up with the febrile energy he encourages the actors to breathe into the jagged, furious, and intellectually rigorous rhythms of the dialogue.”
Eh, what? “In High Flying Bird, Soderbergh annihilates platitude to acknowledge a disturbing truth: that progressive revolution demands an imagination so powerfully tactile that it eclipses the assuring physicality of even an awful reality.”
Well, anyway, I’m certainly excited to watch…
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