Changeling

Angelina Jolie is a single mother whose 9 years old son goes missing one Saturday whilst she is at work in this Clint Eastwood directed film which then exposes the Police and Administrative corruption in Los Angeles in the 1920s/30s.

I was never greatly interested in Eastwood as an actor in Westerns and the Dirty Harry franchise but have liked the films he has directed in recent years. He has picked some fascinating story lines to film and Changeling is no exception.

Jolie gives a fine performance as do many of the cast although the film does contain some melodramatic scenes and cliche moments. There are also elements that puzzled me. Why does the packed congregation to which Pastor John Malkovich preaches include no children at all? And why was the Press so compliant in accepting everything the Police fed them? Were there no questioning members of the Press at all, did they all fear the Police without exception or were they all corrupt too?

Eastwood, or someone else involved in the design of the film, must be a light rail aficionado. There are numerous shots of Los Angeles trams including a long period setting shot for the closing credits. As a tram lover I enjoyed the film for those scenes alone. I think Andrew would be interested to see them too.