Birdy (film)

Birdy
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Alan Parker
Produced by	Ned Kopp David Manson Alan Marshall
Written by	Sandy Kroopf Jack Behr William Wharton (novel)
Starring	Matthew Modine Nicolas Cage
Music by	Peter Gabriel
Cinematography	Michael Seresin
Edited by	Gerry Hambling
Distributed by	TriStar Pictures
Release dates	December 21, 1984
Running time	120 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$7.5 million
Box office	$1,455,045

Birdy is a 1984 American drama film directed by Alan Parker and starring Matthew Modine and Nicolas Cage. It is based on the novel of the same name by William Wharton, although the film is set in the Vietnam era and not during the Second World War.

Synopsis

Two teens, Birdy (Modine) and Al (Cage), become friends at school and serve in Vietnam. Birdy has long been disturbingly fixated with birds and his Vietnam experiences push him over the edge: returning from the war, he is hospitalized for a psychiatric assessment and Al tries to reach him before he'll be separated from Birdy, leaving him alone and lost. As the story develops, flashback scenes show their lives as teens in a working-class neighborhood of Philadelphia in the United States in the 1960s, and their developing friendship and viewpoints.

Cast

• Matthew Modine as Birdy
• Nicolas Cage as Al Columbato
• John Harkins as Dr. Weiss
• Sandy Baron as Mr. Columbato
• Karen Young as Hannah Rourke
• Bruno Kirby as Renaldi
• Nancy Fish as Mrs. Prevost
• George Buck as Birdy's Father
• Dolores Sage as Birdy's Mother
• Pat Ryan as Joe Sagessa
• James Santini as Mario Columbato
• Maud Winchester as Doris Robinson
• Marshall Bell as Ronsky
• Elizabeth Whitcraft as Rosanne
• Sandra Beall as Shirley
• Victoria Nekko as Claire
• Crystal Field as Mrs. Columbato
• John Brumfeld as Mr. Kohler

Soundtrack

The film's soundtrack was written and performed by Peter Gabriel. The music includes adaptations of tracks on Gabriel's third and fourth albums. The music makes heavy use of the Fairlight CMI IIx music computer, an early sampling system. Peter Gabriel was one of the first buyers of the Fairlight CMI IIx.

Reception

The film received the Grand Prize of the Jury at the 1985 Cannes Film Festival. Roger Ebert gave the film four stars (out of four), and at Rotten Tomatoes currently (2011) it has a rating of 88% based on 25 reviews. Halliwell's Film Guide claimed the film "somewhat lacks plot advancement" and is "too self-indulgent even to earn marks for trying."

External links

• Birdy at IMDb
• Birdy at Box Office Mojo
• Birdy at Rotten Tomatoes
• Movie stills