Game 6: The all-but-forgotten movie that blazed the trail for Birdman

A decade-old Michael Keaton-starring drama tackled the same ideas as the new Michael Keaton-starring drama — and had much more to say about them

Game 6, Birdman
(Image credit: (Fox Searchlight))

Stop me if you've heard about this movie: Michael Keaton plays a playwright who can't catch a break. His play is about to begin its Broadway run, and his star actor is pathologically unreliable. A theater critic threatens to make or break the show. The playwright's rebellious daughter seethes with resentment. His ex-wife thinks he's a loser. His charms are lost on his mistress.

Believe it or not, I'm not talking about Birdman, the new Michael Keaton-starring film drawing rave reviews, Oscar buzz, and breathless hyperbole about the resurrection of Keaton's career. I'm talking about Game 6, an unjustly overlooked collaboration between Keaton, screenwriter Don DeLillo, and director Michael Hoffman that was released almost 10 years ago. Birdman isn't just a retread of Game 6; it's a flashier but inferior version of a story that had more weight the first time around.

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Alan Zilberman

Alan is the film editor of Brightest Young Things and a freelance arts writer based in Washington, D.C. He has written about film for The Atlantic, RogerEbert.Com, The Washington City Paper, and IndieWire.