The Hawk Is Dying (2005)

30% of critics liked it
(23 reviews)
43% of users liked it
(2,254 ratings)

A man channels his feelings through an obsession with wild birds in this independent drama based on a novel by Harry Crews. Fortysomething George Gattling (Paul Giamatti) is an emotionally stunted man who makes his living doing auto upholstery and lives with his sister, Precious (Rusty Schwimmer),… More A man channels his feelings through an obsession with wild birds in this independent drama based on a novel by Harry Crews. Fortysomething George Gattling (Paul Giamatti) is an emotionally stunted man who makes his living doing auto upholstery and lives with his sister, Precious (Rusty Schwimmer), and her autistic son, Fred (Michael Pitt). Though George has an on-and-off relationship with Betty (Michelle Williams), a constantly stoned young woman just edging out of her teens, one of the few ways in which his deeper feelings come to the surface is his interest in falcons. George loves to capture and train the birds, even if he isn't especially good at it and has lost nearly all the falcons he's tried to keep. When Fred dies in a drowning accident, his family is devastated, but George is incapable of expressing his grief. One day, George finds a striking red-tailed hawk, and he immediately becomes obsessed with the bird. As George struggles to keep the magnificent hawk in captivity and keep it safe while training it to obey his commands, he's finally able to connect with the sense of loss that has haunted him since Fred's passing. The Hawk Is Dying received its premiere at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 46 min.
Directed By: Julian Goldberger
Written By: Julian Goldberger
Genres: Art House & International, Drama

In Theaters: Jan 21, 2006 Wide
On DVD: May 29, 2007
Studio: Strand Releasing

Critic Reviews

Bill Stamets, Chicago Sun-Times
Goldberger and Giamatti strain too hard for strangeness.
Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader
These strengths seldom mesh persuasively.
Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times
Imagine an entire film infected with hangdog sensibility, unrelieved by humor or narrative interest, and you have The Hawk Is Dying.
Lou Lumenick, New York Post
Not an easy movie to watch, and it's far from perfect -- but it does have an artsy integrity and a fascinatingly intense performance by Paul Giamatti.
Elizabeth Weitzman, New York Daily News
Goldberger's stubbornly insular script might have fared better on stage, where the story would feel more contained than suffocating.
Gene Seymour, Newsday
There's enough worthwhile labor expended, especially by the powerful cast, to make Hawk Is Dying difficult to dismiss, even when it's hard to take.
Chad Greene, Boxoffice Magazine
Never takes flight.
Noel Murray, AV Club
The Hawk Is Dying is a fragile little movie, occasionally ridiculous, but with M. Night Shyamalan's Lady In The Water, Giamatti proved that he can make even the weirdest material believable.
Doris Toumarkine, Film Journal International
Ultimately, this inscrutable film is just an exercise in self-indulgence.
Tom Beer, Time Out New York
For performing half this film with a predatory bird perched and flapping angrily on his arm, Paul Giamatti deserves some sort of award.
Ken Fox, TV Guide's Movie Guide
Giamatti delivers yet another superb performance, turning what might have been a freak show into an unexpectedly moving experience.
James Emanuel Shapiro, Reel.com
Isn't anywhere close to perfect, but giving yourself over to its performances is wonderfully rewarding.
Susan Granger, www.susangranger.com
Resonant but angst-ridden, it's a subtle, strangely spiritual human drama that unfolds slowly, very slowly.
Harvey S. Karten, Compuserve
The principal human character warns more than once, "Don't look at The Hawk." That's good advice, film fans.
Jason Clark, Slant Magazine
It's awfully hard to review a movie called The Hawk is Dying without avoiding bird synonyms and metaphors.
Eric Lurio, Entertainment Insiders
It's not exactly a one-man and a bird show, but it's as close as we're going to get.
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com
Goldberger's study of a troubled man's obsession with falconry is admittedly flawed and Giamatti's acting is self-indulgent, yet there's something truly independent about this film which now gets a second chance to be seen at the Cannes Film Festival.
Pete Vonder Haar, Film Threat
Giamatti, as always, is great. He brings George to life, which isn't all that difficult for one of the few dumpy, balding actors getting leading man roles in Hollywood.

Read all 18 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

Nicki M

This was a good film, but I don't know if it was one I would recommend to everyone. It is kind of slow, and not the most thrilling of topics, I guess, with the main character being obssessed with training a hawk! However, the cast are all very good in this, particularly Paul… More
This was a good film, but I don't know if it was one I would recommend to everyone. It is kind of slow, and not the most thrilling of topics, I guess, with the main character being obssessed with training a hawk! However, the cast are all very good in this, particularly Paul Giamatti and Michelle Williams, and it does ring true. I have to confess I only watched it because Michael Pitt is in it, it is not exactly something that would have leapt of the shelf at me otherwise, and since he's only in it for about half an hour, and not exactly the most interesting role I ever saw him, (he is good, but he's kind of underwritten. Well I guess only so much you can do with an autistic character who barely speaks. Kind of wasted in that part, really), so that isn't a recommendation for other fans either! However, I actually was interested enough in the characters and story to watch the rest of it and see what happened, and I did find it worthwhile, although I can't imagine wanting to sit down and watch it again anytime soon.
Bruce B

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! Thats what I thought after the first 30 min, the 2nd 30 min, and the last 30 min. I have more to do with my life then watch this, don't I? I guess not or I wouldn't have finished it. Save Me Somebody
Tim S

Giamatti's great, but this is what happens when you smoke weed with a camera.
Walter M

[font=Century Gothic]In "The Hawk Is Dying," George Gattling(Paul Giamatti) owns a car detail establishment in Gainesville, Florida, lives with his sister Precious(Rusty Schwimmer) and trains hawks in his spare time but with little success to date. In each of his previous… More
[font=Century Gothic]In "The Hawk Is Dying," George Gattling(Paul Giamatti) owns a car detail establishment in Gainesville, Florida, lives with his sister Precious(Rusty Schwimmer) and trains hawks in his spare time but with little success to date. In each of his previous attempts, the hawk has died but coming upon a red tailed hawk with his mentally handicapped nephew Fred(Michael Pitt), he is willing to give it another shot. Despite his obsession, he attends a party with his sister, leaving Fred in the care of Betty(Michelle Williams), a psychology student from the local university...[/font] [font=Century Gothic][/font] [font=Century Gothic]"The Hawk Is Dying" is an oddly beguiling movie thanks primarily to another superb performance from Paul Giamatti who remains the most fearless actor around, showing that it is possible to act with a bird on his arm. He plays a character obsessed with accomplishing something in his empty life while being haunted by mortality, surrounded by intellectuals that he looks up to. However, this does not explain why George has not been beaten to a pulp by an angry mob of animal rights activists yet but it does explain why Betty is drawn to him since he is providing enough material for a master's thesis, doctoral dissertation and several textbooks. Regardless, George does require professional help.[/font]
Mike T

Paul Giamatti is good with what he's given, and so is Michelle Williams. Michael Pitt, who is brilliant in every role I've seen him in, is really underused here, and as a result he melts into the movie rather than standing out like he should have. Julian Goldberger's… More
Paul Giamatti is good with what he's given, and so is Michelle Williams. Michael Pitt, who is brilliant in every role I've seen him in, is really underused here, and as a result he melts into the movie rather than standing out like he should have. Julian Goldberger's script and direction are chaotic. Character relationships and motives are consistently hazy, and the plot structure is nonexistent. This is a boring, confusing blob of a film filled with talented actors being misused.
Sarah P

I thought the acting was very good and the story was interesting, but for some reason, I just couldn't get into it.