BEING JOHN MALKOVICH A film review by Steve Rhodes Copyright 1999 Steve Rhodes RATING (0 TO ****): *** 1/2
Husband and wife, Craig and Lotte Schwartz, have something in common -- they both love Maxine, played with cocky sexual tension by indie star Catherine Keener (YOUR FRIENDS & NEIGHBORS). This would-be ménage à trois is complicated in that Maxine shares Lotte's passion but not Craig's. Furthermore, only when Lotte is firmed ensconced in the mind of John Malkovich, played by the one and only, does Maxine reciprocate Lotte's love. Whew. Is this one wacky setup or what?
John Cusack, a comedic master of both action and reaction shots (most actors excel at only one), plays Craig. His wife, Lotte, is played with offbeat panache by a glamorous actress successfully made to look plain and completely different. Since I didn't recognize her, I'm not naming her here in hopes that you will be just as surprised as I was.
The absolutely hilarious and completely off-the-wall movie, BEING JOHN MALKOVICH by director Spike Jonze and writer Charlie Kaufman, takes one surprising step after another. With its Escher print of a story, the energetic movie winds and twists with great glee.
As the story starts, Craig, a puppeteer, is having trouble making a living. Answering a want ad, he decides to put his nimble fingers to work as a fast filer in an office.
The "Alice in Wonderland" type office is located on the 7 1/2th floor of a skyscraper. To get there, as any of the building's occupants can show you, all you need do is punch the emergency button on the elevator just after the seventh floor. The crowbar, conveniently located for your opening pleasure in the corner of the elevator, is used to pry open the elevator doors.
Once on the infamous, half-sized floor, Craig finds everyone stooping over as they walk. Sitting, however, poses no difficulties since the furniture is all of normal size. Passing the hiring test by telling the difference between a Dr. Seuss letter and a real one, Craig starts working at the world's oddest office. Maxine is one of his coworkers, and one of the floor's saner inhabitants.
Maxine, who really doesn't think much of Craig no matter how much he hits on her, does agree to go out with him for a drink. "So what do you do?" she asks as a way to make some small talk and in hopes that he'll prove to have a more promising future that he would appear to have. "I'm a puppeteer," he tells her. "Check!" she barks out. The next day she walks away from him complaining that "you play with dolls."
Their relationship changes when he finds a hidden hole behind a filing cabinet. It turns out to be a portal into John Malkovich's mind. Craig makes the first visit, which turns out to last a standard 15 minutes. When he tells Maxine about his discovery, she turns it into a business opportunity that would rival an Internet IPO. She has people lining up to be the famous actor. (A running joke is that most people have no idea who he is, nor what any of his movies are. The most common misconception is that he played "that jewel thief.")
Malkovich is great, finding one way after another to poke fun at himself. Looking beefy and bald, even Craig in Malkovich's body complains, "why couldn't I have found the portal to a younger body." And if you think the great actor's time is all spent in intellectual pursuits, you'll be surprised to see him discussing bath towel colors with a catalogue sales rep on the phone, as he looks with displeasure at the leftover Chinese food in his fridge.
There are several good cameos. Charlie Sheen, playing a parody of himself, serves as Malkovich's friend and advisor. He offers such thoughts as, "truth is for suckers, Johnny-boy." The more Malkovich denigrates Maxine, the more Sheen wants to have sex with her. Sheen's hair toward the end is embarrassingly and hilariously awful. Brad Pitt stops by for a one-second, open-mouthed gawk.
You might ask yourself the question of "what happens when a man goes through his own portal?" Malkovich does. I'm not about to reveal the answer but be prepared to laugh and laugh hard.
So where do you land when your 15 minutes on the Malkovich-mind roller coaster is up? Like a new born colt falling to the ground, you are promptly deposited alongside the New Jersey Turnpike, right by some classically ugly oil refineries. Don't ask; I don't know. The picture never explains why it works this way, but it's funny, no matter how often they show it. Just go with the flow. Don't question; just laugh and enjoy it. Still, I would have liked a small mention in the credits that somewhere in their subconscious the film must have been inspired by Lewis Carroll.
BEING JOHN MALKOVICH runs 1:52. It is rated R for sex and language and would be fine for teenagers.
Email: Steve.Rhodes@InternetReviews.com Web: http://www.InternetReviews.com
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