Being John Malkovich

Directed by Spike Jonze

With John Malkovich, John Cusack, Cameron Diaz, Catherine Keener and others

Christina says:

Puppeteer Craig Schwartz (John Cusack) has to admit that he can’t live by his art and gets a real job. After a bizarre interview with Dr. Lester (Orson Bean) he starts work on the 7 ½th floor of an office building where the ceiling is so low people of average height have to crouch all the time. Although he is married to the gentle Lotte (Cameron Diaz) he immediately falls for the aggressive Maxine (Catherine Keener) who works on his floor. Unfortunately she isn’t interested in his attentions. By chance Craig discovers in his office a small door hidden behind a filing cabinet. When he crawls into the passage he suddenly is sucked into the brain of actor John Malkovich. Before he can recover from his shock he is kicked out again and finds himself on a roadside near the New Jersey Turnpike. He tells Maxine to impress her, but it doesn’t work. Maxine falls in love with Lotte in Malkovich’s body.

BEING JOHN MALKOVICH is much more than a grotesque comedy. It’s a movie about people who are not who they want to be. Craig slips into different personas with the help of his puppets. Lotte gives her unwanted love to exotic pets. Maxine is your typical self-absorbed yuppie who won’t look twice at Craig because he doesn’t wear expensive designer clothes. All three are lacking something in their lives, whether they are aware of it or not. And in the middle of all this there’s John Malkovich asking himself if he is losing his mind. Kudos to him for being part of this. Cameron Diaz and John Cusack are barely recognizable with their shaggy manes. They carry the part of the movie that goes beyond funny and they do it with grace and style. Spike Jonze expects a lot from his viewers especially those who only came to be entertained. But except for one small slip he masters the tightrope walk between comedy and tragedy. BEING JOHN MALKOVICH is his impressive debut as a director of feature length films and he gets stellar performances from human and animal actors alike.

Don’t miss this movie.

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Christina Gross

Last changes: 01/04/03