While too many films suffer the fate of creative bankruptcy, Being John Malkovich is a refreshing study in contrast, so bracingly original that you'll want to send director Spike Jonze and screenwriter Charlie Kaufman a thank-you note for restoring your faith in the enchantment of film. Even if it ultimately serves little purpose beyond the thrill of comedic invention, this demented romance is gloriously entertaining, spilling over with ideas that tickle the brain and even touch the heart. That's to be expected in a movie that dares to ponder the existential dilemma of a forlorn puppeteer (John Cusack) who discovers a metaphysical portal into the brain of actor John Malkovich.
The puppeteer takes a job working as a file clerk on the seventh-and-a-half floor of a Manhattan office building; this idea alone might serve as the comedic basis for an entire film, but Jonze and Kaufman are just getting started. Add a devious co-worker (Catherine Keener), Cusack's dowdy wife (a barely recognisable Cameron Diaz), and a business scheme to capitalise on the thrill of being John Malkovich, and you've got a movie that just gets crazier as it plays by its own outrageous rules. Malkovich himself is the film's pièce de résistance, playing on his own persona with obvious delight and--when he enters his own brain via the portal--appearing with multiple versions of himself in a tour-de-force use of digital trickery. Does it add up to much? Not really. But for 112 liberating minutes, Being John Malkovich is a wild place to visit. --Jeff Shannon
(45 votes)
2.
Craig Schwartz (John Cusack) takes a job as a filing clerk in an office building in New York City. One day, he discovers a strange door behind a filing cabinet, a door which takes him into the mind of John Malkovich for 15 minutes...then dumps him out on the side of the New Jersey Turnpike. But what can one do with such a portal? Soon Craig is telling others, sharing this unique experience. For an admission fee, perhaps.
(44 votes)
3.
Original is far too understated a term to describe this picture, brought to you by the surreal, twisted minds of screenwriter Kaufman and actor-director Jonze. The story concerns a puppeteer, Craig Schwartz (Cusack), who discovers his office has a secret portal that leads directly into the brain of one of America's most popular actors, John Malkovich (Malkovich himself, in a hilariously self-mocking appearance). When the journey ends fifteen minutes later, the participant is spewed onto the side of the New Jersey Turnpike. Schwartz uses his discovery as a way to get closer to fellow co-worker Maxine (the always sexy Keener). Together, the pair form JM, INC., which allows ordinary citizens to join in on the fun for $200 a pop. But when Craig's wife Lotte (a homely Diaz), as Malkovich, is seduced by Maxine, things begin to unfurl at an even more outrageous pace. Sound confusing? Thanks to Jonze's grounded direction, it isn't. The result is one of the decade's most original films.
(43 votes)
Mooviees.com is not the official site for this film.
All editorial views and opinions expressed here are for entertainment purposes only.
<>
Movie Database
In Theaters
