Earthquake Bird
EARTHQUAKE BIRD - NETFLIX
Earthquake Bird — directed by Wash Westmoreland — is by no means a terrible film, however, it does very little to make it stand out amongst the sea of growing NETFLIX titles. It boasts some awe-inspiring and beautiful cinematography but this sadly is nowhere near enough to save this feature from being quickly forgotten.
Earthquake Bird follows Lucy Fly (Alicia Vikander), who is questioned regarding the disappearance of her friend Lily Bridges (Riley Keough). Lily has gone missing in Japan and with Lucy being Lily’s closest thing to a friend, the film cuts back and forth in time to show the audience reveals and circumstance of the pair’s complicated relationship between the characters involved.
The cast on offer is relatively decent in their respective roles, especially Vikander, who echoes similar acting sensibility as she did in EX_MACHINA, but there are no immediate sequences or moments in the film where any of the actors are afforded or able to showcase their range and ability.
The cinematography by Chung Chung-Hoon is genuinely a pleasure and a beautiful attribute the film boasts. The use of reflections and shadows are executed brilliantly, with the blocking of certain scenes making some of the more slower paced sequences just that little bit more appealing and engaging to watch in a strong visual prowess.
However, past this, there is little else on offer that the film impresses. The story slowly unfolds with very poor momentum and after ninety-minutes, the climax peaks in a somewhat underwhelming flat fashion. Failing to incite an engaging story and when said story is not appealing, it becomes a challenge to engage with anything else throughout the film — turning into a battle against boredom if anything.
Another issue the film suffers from is that of the central relationship between the characters. Lucy Fly becomes near obsessed with Teiji but the film fails in explaining sufficiently why. Lucy’s friendship with Lily is more valuable and intriguing but could undoubtedly benefit from further development between the two, especially considering their relationship is a core narrative thread throughout the film.
Many will find Earthquake Bird to be a sluggish and dull movie as it does little to stand out from others in an oversaturated market in the genres of both crime and mystery. However, those who manage to break through the boredom barrier of Earthquake Bird’s slow narrative will thoroughly enjoy the fantastic cinematography on offer as well as the performances from Vikander and Keough.
Earthquake Bird is released November 15th exclusively on NETFLIX.
