---
title: "Changeling"
year: 2008
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/changeling"
fi1m_id: "changeling"
imdb_id: "tt0824747"
tmdb_id: 3580
wikidata_id: "Q275553"
fi1m_score: 68
critics_score: 72
critics_reviews: 16
published: "2026-10-01T20:14:07.809076+00:00"
updated: "2026-10-01T20:14:09.655923+00:00"
region: "AT"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Changeling (2008)

Directed by Clint Eastwood · 2h 22m · Crime, Drama, Mystery

## Identity

Changeling

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/changeling
- **Type:** Film
- **Fi1m ID:** changeling
- **IMDb ID:** tt0824747
- **TMDB ID:** 3580
- **Wikidata ID:** Q275553
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0824747/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/3580, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q275553

**Fi1m score: 68** · Critics 72 from 16 reviews

*In a sentence:* Everyone in 1928 Los Angeles has a hat, a title and an opinion on whether she knows her own child

> Clint Eastwood’s account of a mother handed the wrong child by the Los Angeles police is handsome, serious and properly angry, and Angelina Jolie is better in it than she is credited with. It is also half an hour too long, with three endings.

## Synopsis

Los Angeles, 1928. Christine Collins (Angelina Jolie) is a mother whose son goes missing, and she wants him back. Months later Captain J.J. Jones (Jeffrey Donovan) announces that the boy has been found and brings a child off a train in front of the press, and Christine says that he is not her son. Jones tells her to take him home anyway, and when she keeps saying it, the department sets about proving she is mistaken. Her one ally is the Rev. Gustav Briegleb (John Malkovich), a radio preacher who has spent years attacking Chief James E. Davis (Colm Feore) and his department on air. Detective Lester Ybarra (Michael Kelly), meanwhile, is sent on a case that seems to have nothing to do with hers.

## Review

Clint Eastwood has taken a true case from Los Angeles in 1928 and made a film about being told by every man with a badge or a title that you do not know your own child. J. Michael Straczynski’s script follows Christine Collins from the afternoon her son goes missing through the months in which the police hand her a stranger and then set about proving she is mad for saying so. It is serious, well made and properly angry, and Angelina Jolie is better in it than its reputation allows. It is also half an hour too long, with three endings where one would have done.

Tom Stern shoots the city with most of the colour drained out, so the browns and greys sit flat and skin looks like paper, and the one warm thing in most frames is Jolie’s lipstick. James J. Murakami rebuilds the telephone exchange where Collins works, long rows of women at switchboards under a high ceiling, and it is the best set in the film. Deborah Hopper’s cloche hats and narrow coats make Collins look smaller each time she walks into a room full of men. Eastwood wrote the music himself, a slow piano theme with strings, and it arrives on cue whenever somebody is about to cry. Jolie has usually done the work by then.

For the first hour she is quietly good. She plays Collins as a woman who has spent her working life being polite to men and stays polite while they lie to her, and the politeness is what hurts. The scene at the railway station, where Captain J.J. Jones (Jeffrey Donovan) brings a boy off a train in front of the photographers, made us angrier than we expected, and it was Donovan who did it. He never raises his voice. He tells her she is tired, that the boy has changed, that she should take him home on a trial basis, in the tone of a man helping a customer with a form. We wanted to hit him.

Later the script sends Collins into room after room to say a version of the same sentence, and by the third room it is the same scene again. John Malkovich, as the radio preacher Gustav Briegleb, is restrained by his own standards, a man who likes the sound of his own broadcasts and happens to be right. Colm Feore’s Chief Davis and Donovan’s Jones are smug rather than frightening, and the film’s idea of a corrupt police department never gets more complicated than hair oil and a moustache.

Michael Kelly, as Detective Lester Ybarra, gives the film’s best performance: a policeman doing a dull job properly, sent on an unrelated errand, who finds something that changes the film’s shape. We will not describe it. Amy Ryan has two scenes later on and makes both count. Jason Butler Harner appears in the second half, and his scenes are the ones we would not want to watch alone.

And it keeps changing. It is a mother’s story, then something close to a horror film, then a courtroom drama, then another courtroom drama, and Joel Cox and Gary D. Roach cut each competently and let none of them go. There is a natural ending at about the two-hour mark, and we felt the film reach it; then it carried on, twice. Each addition is there because the real case had one. The film did not need them.

[*Mystic River*](https://film.one/film/mystic-river) (2003) was about grief and a crime and told them as one story; [*Million Dollar Baby*](https://film.one/film/million-dollar-baby) (2004) knew when to stop. *Changeling* has two stories and cuts between them, and the one with the mother in it is the one we cared about. Eastwood’s best quality, the patience to sit in a room while nothing seems to happen, is here for the first hour and gone by the last.

Most critics have been a little kinder, and we see why: the anger is real and the craft is sound. Watch it at home, where the length is easier to forgive. It runs 142 minutes and carries a 15, which the second half earns.

*Fi1m score 68, published 1 October 2026.*

## What the critics say

Most critics admire Changeling, and the praise gathers around Angelina Jolie. Nearly every review singles out her Christine Collins as direct, unyielding and affecting, the centre of a long, sweeping story. Eastwood’s direction is praised as confident, several critics approving his decision to widen one mother’s tragedy into an attack on the Los Angeles police and the city’s power structure. The recreation of 1920s Los Angeles is admired widely, and the authorities’ indifference to Collins is what many say stays with them.

The reservations are about length and tone. Several critics find the film overlong, sentimental and prone to melodrama, with courtroom scenes and a drawn-out final act costing it urgency; a few object to the music and the tonal shifts. The spread is wide, from full marks to rejection. Slant finds it a graceless muddle that never examines the lies it raises, and the Evening Standard calls it patchy and pompous, finding Jolie increasingly strained while praising the child actors.

## Straight answers

**Is Changeling worth watching?**

*Changeling* is worth watching for anyone with patience for a serious, well-made period drama about a mother the Los Angeles police refuse to believe, and we scored it 68. Angelina Jolie is better than her reputation in it and the first hour is properly angry. It is also half an hour too long, with three endings where one would have done.

**How long is Changeling, and what is it rated?**

*Changeling* runs 2h 22m. It is a crime and drama film.

**Where can I watch Changeling in Austria?**

*Changeling* is available to rent from Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV from €2.99. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service.

**How violent or frightening is Changeling, and is it suitable for children?**

*Changeling* carries a UK 15 certificate, which its second half earns, and it is not suitable for children. The first hour is a drama about a mother and a police department, upsetting rather than violent, but the film later turns towards something close to horror, and Jason Butler Harner's scenes are ones we would not want to watch alone. Older teenagers who can take dark true-crime material will be fine.

**How does Changeling compare to Chinatown?**

*Changeling* and [*Chinatown*](https://film.one/film/chinatown) are both about corrupt men in hats running Los Angeles, a decade apart, and *Chinatown* is the better film. Polanski's detective story is funny, unsettling and tightly built, with villains that frighten; Eastwood's is sincere and handsome but its police are smug rather than dangerous and it runs on past its natural ending. Choose *Changeling* if you want a mother's story told straight, *Chinatown* for almost everything else.

**What should I watch after Changeling?**

After *Changeling*, try [*Chinatown*](https://film.one/film/chinatown) (1974, Fi1m 93): Los Angeles a decade on, same water, same men in hats, better villains. Then [*Mystic River*](https://film.one/film/mystic-river) (2003, Fi1m 82): Eastwood on a lost child and the people left behind, told as one story; and [*Zodiac*](https://film.one/film/zodiac) (2007, Fi1m 91): An investigation that refuses to hurry and never once mistakes length for weight.

### Reviews we read (16)

- **Time Out**, Wally Hammond (5/5): The review gives Changeling full marks, signaling a strongly positive verdict. It praises Eastwood’s willingness to make varied material his own and take risks. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/changeling)
- **Empire**, Damon Wise (90/100, inferred): Wise calls the film a fabulous, ambitious drama. He particularly praises Angelina Jolie’s intimate, involving performance at the center of its sweeping story. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/changeling-review/)
- **RogerEbert.com**, Roger Ebert (3.5/4): Ebert finds the drama compelling, though weighed down by its length and melodrama. He singles out Angelina Jolie’s performance as a strength. [Read](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/changeling-2008)
- **Variety**, Todd McCarthy (85/100, inferred): McCarthy finds the film emotionally powerful and stylistically assured, praising Eastwood’s ambitious expansion of a personal tragedy into a critique of Los Angeles’s power structure. He also singles out Angelina Jolie’s direct, affecting performance and the film’s visually vivid period setting. [Read](https://variety.com/2008/film/awards/changeling-3-1200522263/)
- **The Hollywood Reporter**, Kirk Honeycutt (80/100, inferred): Honeycutt finds the film compelling and emotionally powerful, though courtroom scenes briefly slow its momentum. He especially praises Angelina Jolie’s portrayal of a mother whose vulnerability and resolve coexist. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/changeling-126241/)
- **The AV Club**, Keith Phipps (B): Phipps finds the film compelling and unsettling, but says its final scenes lose urgency. He praises Angelina Jolie’s sad, unyielding performance and the film’s depiction of institutional failure. [Read](https://www.avclub.com/changeling-1798205101)
- **The Guardian**, Peter Bradshaw (75/100, inferred): Bradshaw finds the film gutsy, unusual and powerfully told despite some awkward choices. He praises Eastwood’s confident direction and the film’s vivid period detail, while faulting its sugary music and overripe scenes. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2008/nov/28/changeling-review-angelina-jolie)
- **The New Yorker**, Richard Brody (75/100, inferred): Brody presents the film as a compelling lesson in democratic activism. He praises its meticulous period recreation and restrained performances, especially Jolie’s understated portrayal. [Read](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2009/03/09/eastwood-ho)
- **Screen Daily**, Mike Goodridge (64/100, inferred): The page identifies this as a review, but its verdict is inaccessible. The paywall also conceals what the critic singles out for praise or criticism. [Read](https://www.screendaily.com/changeling/4038805.article)
- **Total Film**, Philip Kemp (3/5): The review finds the film gripping at first but overlong and overly sentimental by the end. It praises the convincing recreation of 1920s Los Angeles, while criticizing the one-dimensional characterization and drawn-out endings. [Read](https://www.gamesradar.com/changeling-review/)
- **Slant Magazine**, Ed Gonzalez (2/4): Gonzalez finds the film a distracted, graceless muddle that fails to examine the lies and themes it raises. He praises Angelina Jolie’s emotionally committed performance as Christine Collins, despite criticizing Eastwood’s framing of her. [Read](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/changeling/)
- **The New York Times**, Manohla Dargis (50/100, inferred): The review’s verdict cannot be verified from the blocked page. Its specific praise or complaint is likewise unavailable. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/21/movies/21dargis.html)
- **Evening Standard** (30/100, inferred): The critic finds the film patchy and pompous, with Angelina Jolie’s performance becoming increasingly strained. The child actors and the story’s subtler ideas about home earn praise. [Read](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/changeling-is-the-mother-of-all-tragedies-7411379.html)
- **Eye for Film**, Jennie Kermode (85/100, inferred): Kermode finds the film compelling, mature and emotionally gruelling. She praises Straczynski’s restrained script and Jolie’s riveting performance, while noting a flaw in Malkovich’s mannered acting. [Read](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/changeling-film-review-by-jennie-kermode)
- **Den of Geek**, Christian Forbes (4/5): The review praises the film as a captivating, moving portrayal of Christine Collins’s fight against police corruption. It singles out Angelina Jolie’s raw, emotional performance for bringing Collins’s struggle and determination to life. [Read](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/changeling-review/)
- **Digital Spy**, Stella Papamichael (65/100, inferred): The critic finds the film a moving depiction of cruel injustice, though its many shifts in tone leave it lacking cohesion. The indifference Christine faces from authorities makes the strongest impression, while the film skims over her relationship with the impostor boy. [Read](https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a135614/changeling/)

## Details

- **Director:** Clint Eastwood
- **Director:** Clint Eastwood
- **Writer:** J. Michael Straczynski
- **Cinematography:** Tom Stern
- **Editor:** Joel Cox, Gary D. Roach
- **Music:** Clint Eastwood
- **Production design:** James J. Murakami
- **Costume design:** Deborah Hopper
- **Producer:** Brian Grazer, Robert Lorenz, Ron Howard
- **Cast:** Angelina Jolie as Christine Collins; John Malkovich as Rev. Gustav Briegleb; Jeffrey Donovan as Captain J.J. Jones; Michael Kelly as Detective Lester Ybarra; Colm Feore as Chief James E. Davis; Jason Butler Harner as Gordon Northcott; Amy Ryan as Carol Dexter; Geoff Pierson as S.S. Hahn
- **Runtime:** 2h 22m
- **Release (Austria):** 23 January 2009
- **Genres:** Crime, Drama, Mystery
- **Budget:** $55 million
- **Box office:** $113 million

## Where to watch in Austria

- Amazon Prime Video: rent €2.99, sd
- Apple TV: rent €3.99, hd
- Apple TV: buy €8.99, hd
- Amazon Prime Video: buy €8.99, sd

*Checked 2026-10-01.*

Also available in: AE, AT, AU, BE, BG, BR, CA, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, EE, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HR, HU, IE, IN, IT, LT, MX, NL, NO, NZ, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, TR, UA, US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## Awards

- Academy Awards 2009: Best Actress (nominated); Best Cinematography (nominated); Best Production Design (nominated)

## If you liked this

- *Chinatown* (1974), Fi1m 93: Los Angeles a decade on, same water, same men in hats, better villains. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/chinatown.md)
- *Mystic River* (2003), Fi1m 82: Eastwood on a lost child and the people left behind, told as one story. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/mystic-river.md)
- *Zodiac* (2007), Fi1m 91: An investigation that refuses to hurry and never once mistakes length for weight. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/zodiac.md)
- *The Vanishing* (1988), Fi1m 88: A Dutch missing-person film, patient and pitiless; do not watch the American remake. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-vanishing.md)
- *Vera Drake* (2004), Fi1m 84: Mike Leigh’s working woman against the state, and nobody tells you when to cry. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/vera-drake.md)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/changeling