Fascinating biopic about Robert Stroud, a man committed to life in prison who became one of the premier experts and authors in the world of bird diseases.The film has that raggedy visual style common to John Frankenheimer movies, which I like. But the screenplay is straight up inspirational Hollywood stuff about the inherent dignity of human life no matter what the circumstances, not a perspective I particularly share. It's also far too long, losing the thread of Stroud's story a bit along the way. A long segment detailing a famous escape attempt from Alcatraz will satisfy those who like a good prison break movie, but it feels tangential to the main plot and adds a good 20 minutes or so to the movie.Burt Lancaster was a go-to actor for steely resolve, and he reeks of it in this film. Another welcome presence is Thelma Ritter as Stroud's mother, a sweet old lady who turns out to have a heart of ice. Yikes, am I glad I wasn't born into this family. Lancaster and Ritter were both Oscar nominated, as was Telly Savalas as a fellow inmate and friend to Stroud. But one of my favorite performances came from the unrecognized Betty Field, as the woman who would eventually marry the incarcerated Stroud and turn his mother against him.Rounding out the film's quartet of Oscar nominations was the black and white cinematography of Burnett Guffey, who had already won for "From Here to Eternity" and would go on to win again for "Bonnie and Clyde."Aside: With her sixth loss, Thelma Ritter tied Deborah Kerr as the female actor with the most nominations never to have won, a record that stands to this day, though Kerr did win an honorary award in 1993. The all-time loser record goes to poor Peter O'Toole, with eight losses. O'Toole was also thrown an honorary bone in 2002, but lord knows he should have won legitimately any number of times.Grade: A-

I watched this again the other day for the first time since my original viewing about 40 years ago.As it so happens, I toured Alcatraz about 6 months ago and none of the scenes supposedly inside the prison were actually filmed at Alcatraz. This isn't surprising since Alcatraz was still an active prison at the time of filming.As far as the movie, Lancaster was superb and deserved his Oscar nomination. All of the other actors were also very fine except for Telly Savalas who was rather hammy as Feto Gomez. Lancaster had the mannerisms and gait a man might have who had spent 50 years in prison, nearly all of it in solitary. One of Lancaster's finest roles, if not his finest.I haven't read the book by Tom Geddis that this film is supposedly based on, but if the film was a faithful adaptation, then Geddis should have been paid as a novelist not as a nonfiction author.Stroud was not a nice man and did not appear to be rehabilitated or mellow as he aged - even though he became a renowned expert on birds while at Leavenworth. According to the National Park Service sources at Alcatraz, Stroud was a difficult, violent person almost until the end. Only his deteriorating health "mellowed" him, not his bird work.In the film Stroud (Lancaster) complains to Warden Shoemaker (Karl Malden) that the prison system was "repressive" and robbed men of their individuality. Oh, boo-hoo: murder is even more repressive and permanently robs the victims of their rights to individuality. In real life, Stroud continually demonstrated that he was a menace to others when he was in and out of prison. The film's attempts to soften or lessen the severity of Stroud's crimes and psychopathic personality was one of the things I found most disappointing in this treatment.There were other fabrications or omissions that detracted from the film for me: Stroud was an ardent homosexual (he often wrote homosexual erotica while in prison) who several times attempted to rape other prisoners. This aspect of his personality was not even remotely hinted at in the film. In addition, Stroud had no role whatsoever in the 1946 so-called "Battle of Alcatraz". This film paints him as someone who tried to make peace and who was instrumental in ending the assault. In fact, the weapons Stroud is shown dropping out the window in the movie were found on the dead inmates when authorities finally restored order.In summary, this movie is a fine example of a great director at the peak of his powers. The story is compelling and the acting is first rate. However, the plot is largely fictional and the viewer will learn almost nothing about Stroud himself. It is no more enlightening on Stroud than JFK was about the Kennedy assassination, which is why I gave this film a 7 instead of 8. As long as the viewer is aware that it is almost completely sanitized, they are encouraged to view and appreciate this excellent film.

John Frankheimer's "Birdman of Alcatraz" was adapted from the novel of the same name written by Thomas E. Gaddis. The original material was already a fictionalization of the life of Robert Stroud, a convict sentenced for life in solitary confinement in Leavenworth prison due to his rebellious and psychopathic behavior yet, thanks to his predispositions for intelligence, he turns into a self-taught expert on birds and avian pathologies writing many scientific essays and becoming an authority among bird lovers and poultry risers. The film tells the story of this evolution, and one of the most intriguing and captivating premises from any prison movie.So how futile and sterile can all these debates about the accuracy be? Granted the real Stroud wasn't as mild-mannered as Burt Lancaster in the film, although he wasn't the jolliest fellow either, all right, there are some inaccuracies but aren't they all diluted in the richness of a life totally dedicated to birds and living creatures? Isn't it worth enjoying the film for the inspirational lesson of self-made-rehabilitation and conquered dignity? There's so much to appreciate in the story that I fail to see what kind of improvement a 100% accurate movie would have done. And to conclude that parenthesis, I've read the man's biography and the changes are not crucial to the story. The main plot points of his life, so to speak, are all there.And what is remarkable is the slow pacing and the way that slowness conveys most of the excitement. It's the story of a man who's got only time, and at a time where time has become such a luxury, Robert Stroud is almost a wealthy man, because all his intelligence needs is a trigger, a compass to his actions. One of the greatest lines of the film describes the hellish nature of solitary confinement from the certitude of everything that will happen. Since he excitement of life comes from its unpredictability, a man in solitary is a living dead. Stroud's first admirable act will be to get rid of that miserable condition and find something to make his life enjoyable. In a certain way, he reminded me of Andy Dufresne and his passion for rocks, and I guess Dufresne had the stuff to become as respectable a geologist than Stroud a cytologist.Yet unlike Dufresne, Stroud had the time, but not the pressure. So it all started with a little sparrow found from a fallen nest during a stormy night, a bird promised to a certain death if someone didn't feed him. At that time, Stroud had no redeeming qualities, too many Oedipal ties with his mother (Thelma Ritter), misanthropist, constantly questioning the authority of the warden (Karl Malden) and signing his own death warrant by stabbing a guard to death. It's only thanks to the dedication of his mother that he's finally condemned for life sentence. Anyway, the guy is obviously a maniac but even the coldest heart can't just let a poor living creature to her death. Does it contradict his nature as a killer? I guess in a sense, he felt empathy toward the bird as if he was incarnating his own solitude and entrapment, helping the bird would break his routine and save a life, give his life a tiny purpose even for a few days.So, he takes him, stamps on a few insects and give him some parts, the bird grows, then learns to fly, and with the same patience and perseverance, Stroud in a fatherly wisdom encourages the bird to fly, and that's his epiphany. He knows what he's been born for. The rest is history, from one bird, he adopts many other sparrows, canaries, allowing many other inmates to have theirs, including his neighbor Feto (Telly Salavals), he also learns a lesson of courtesy of politeness from the same guard who's been watching him for years without getting one kind word, especially when he's been helping him for building cages and nests. His character evolves and so is his expertise, and his knowledge of the avian world, the movie almost takes a documentary style of directing as we can follow a bird getting from the eggshell and observe the whole process of making the medicine that could finally cure the septicemia that stroke his birds raising. The most surprising thing is that he never gets any money or recognition for his efforts and it's only when he's forced to live his birds and stop his medicine trade that he uses his mother and a supporter for his cause to give him publicity, and allow the legend to be born.The film gets more and more dramatic and while it sometimes serves the narrative, I, for once, appreciate the exchange between Stroud and Shoemaker about the difference of conception of what the judicial system on the true meaning of rehabilitation, and although a bit preachy, the part are well-written and hit a sensitive chord. But I don't understand why they feel the need to insert that battle of Alcatraz that adds nothing whatsoever to the plot, and distracts us from the core of the film. It had the same frustrating effect than watching the final part of "Cast Away" after the mesmerizing middle act where Tom Hanks conquered Nature. Stroud, like Chuck Nolan, was a fascinating character enough not to need any supplementary excuse for thrills.If the "Birdman of Alcatraz" stuck with birds, it would've been perfect, the film is still a remarkable inspiration for everyone to transcend adversity and to sometimes find the true path for their lives, when they think they're in dead-end.

Birdman of Alcatraz isn't just a movie, it's an experience. The story of a man who's able to lead a meaning and productive life despite serving a life sentence in solitary confinement. A man who is able to create an empire of bird keeping and aviary research within the solitary confinement quarters of a prison. When I first watched the movie I only vaguely knew about the story and I was in awe as just how his empire gradually comes to be. I don't know what it's like to be isolated in a confined area for days on end but I suspect this movie may provide the closest feeling I could ever get to it; black & white cinematography and claustrophobic prison cells go hand in hand.Birdman of Alcatraz made me a fan of Burt Lancaster. It was not the first film I had seen him in but it was the first at which I was struck at what an immense powerhouse of an actor he is, carrying a two and a half hour long, mostly single location picture. His portrayal of Robert Stroud is the classic characterisation of tough on the outside, soft on the inside but Lancaster's immense performance prevents this from coming of as a corny dichotomy. Stroud's relationship with his mother even has shades to the Cody Jarret mother complex; yet I find the most compelling relationship in the movie is of that between Stroud and the warden played by Karl Malden, which I feel is summed up with one line (and one of my favourite movie quotes), "That convict has been a thorn in my side for 35 years but I'll give him one thing, he never lied to me."Like many biographical films, Birdman of Alcatraz receives criticism with the historical liberties taken; most prominently in this instance the fact that the real Robert Stroud was reportedly an incredibly unpleasant individual. I'll say it now and I'll say it again: Movies are not documentaries. When adapting a real life story to the screen, changes and liberties are likely going to be made for the sake of storytelling and entertainment; would a story closer to the truth have been more interesting? My second rebuttal to the 'not historically accurate' criticism is that how many people would even be aware of certain historical figures if it wasn't for their film biopics; movies can act as a gateway to learning about history. After watching Birdman of Alcatraz I wanted to read about the real Robert Stroud, otherwise I might not have even heard of the man.