:
John Cusack,
John Cusack,
Cameron Diaz,
more...
:
Spike Jonze,
Spike Jonze
see all cast/crew...
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: Polygram USA Video
: Comedies, Foreign, Independent, British Comedy, Fantasy, UK
: 113 min.
: English
: English, Spanish, French
see additional details...
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Would you pay money to journey into the mind of the star of Con Air, The Killing Fields, and In The Line of Fire? Puppeteer Craig Schwartz (John Cusack) is having money problems, so he takes a temporary job as a file clerk on the seventh-and-a-half floor of a large office building. One day, while rummaging behind a cabinet, he finds a small door that leads to the center of the mind of actor John Malkovich (played by, you guessed it, John Malkovich). Craig discovers that entering the portal allows him to become John Malkovich for a brief spell, and in time he and his beautiful but aloof co-worker Maxine (Catherine Keener) get the bright idea to charge admission for the privilege of spending 15 minutes inside the head of a well-known actor. Malkovich realizes that something strange is happening to him, but can do little to stop it, as strangers take over his mind for a quarter-hour at a time. Craig's wife Lotte (Cameron Diaz) eventually takes a trip into Malkovich's psyche, and she soon finds herself in love with Maxine, with whom Malkovich has an affair; meanwhile, Maxine in time becomes infatuated with both Craig and Lotte, but only when they're inside Malkovich. Being John Malkovich marked the feature-length debut of director Spike Jonze, who previously made acclaimed music videos for Weezer, The Beastie Boys, and The Breeders, among others. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Special Features:
- Theatrical Trailer
- TV Spots
- 7 1/2 Floor Orientation
- American Arts & Culture Presents...John Horatio Malkovich, Dance of Despair and Disillusionment
- A Page with Nothing on It
- An Intimate Portrait of the Art of Puppeteering
- An interview with Director Spike Jonze
- An Intimate Portrait of the Art of Background Driving
- Cast and Crew bios & filmographies
- Spike's Photo Album
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How to Get Ahead in Advertising
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Three Kings
David O. Russell's near-brilliant black war comedy is also of interest for Spike Jonze's prominent acting(!) role
Walking and Talking
One of our favorite Catherine Keener roles is still this 1996 indie comedy, wherein she's slightly less caustic than usual
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| Truth Is for Suckers
by RJones3
October 7, 2007 - 6:08 PM PDT
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| This movie belongs to a genre that I propose to call the "inside joke." In creative efforts of the inside-joke genre the creative professional becomes the deus ex machina. Art generally draws on life to give us an interpretation of the human experience, but in this genre art draws on art to give us an interpretation of--well, whatever the artist has in mind. For those who are artists themselves, or enamored at least of the creative process, this incestuous kind of creation can be entertaining, an amusing joke indeed for those on the inside. This case in point begins promisingly by establishing a sympathetic antagonist, played by John Cusack, who is beset from every angle by the ills of modern life. By what imaginative twists of plot does the antagonist overcome his circumstances? In a word, he doesn't. By the end of the movie the story is no longer about him, and he becomes the pathetic nonentity that he was at the beginning. The ultimate fan's fantasy takes over, and the move ends up being about John Malkovitch. The action centers now on the perennial actor's obsession with identity, especially sexual identity. The lesson for those of us in the real world is put into words by Malkovitch's aging sycophant, Charlie Sheen: Truth is for suckers. |
| What a letdown!
by Chiend
February 10, 2006 - 5:47 PM PST
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1 out of 5 members found this review helpful
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| I have to admit I was excited about seeing BEING JOHN MALKOVICH. I had listened to all the rave reviews from the "experts" and those whose opinions I confide in alike. I knew it was going to be surreal, and that only served to further whet my appetite (I'm a big devotee of Luis Bunuel's works). So I sat back and watched, with jaw-dropping disbelief, the movie that had garnered so much praise, hoping to be entertained at some point. What I witnessed instead was a 113-minute bowel movement that failed to materialize. I will admit the notion of a restaurant filled with John Malkovich look-alikes and a rapidly balding Charlie Sheen is mildly inspired, but the rest of this misguided piece of tripe is boring, unwitty, unfunny, and impossible to like due to the rotten dispositions of it's main characters. At first, I thought it was me. I honestly thought about watching the film again on the off-chance I had missed some plot devices integral to the story. But after listening to the muddled accounts of those pretending to appreciate this nonsense, I was sure I was right, and the thought of reliving the experience fills me with dread. I don't think I could handle the resulting ennui. If you enjoyed this movie, feel free to tell us the film had it's moments (it did), but don't try to claim you understood the plot. You were never meant to. |
| a crazy wacked out.. great film.
by psychodrama311
July 1, 2003 - 7:37 PM PDT
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6 out of 7 members found this review helpful
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| cusak. malkovich. keener. and diaz combine to make this film work.. with spike jonze showing everything he ever learned as a video director.. he take's the extremely hilarious charlie kaufman script.. and run's with it. cusak steps out of his usual self.. and takes a extreme neurotic character to the limit. malkovich is suprisingly funny with well timed fits of nutty actor ego. diaz and keener add flavor as to this mix.. a crazy flick to watch. |
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GreenCine Member Rating
(Average 7.50)
2565 Votes
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