Being John Malkovich (1999)- Trailer
What if you could see and experience everything the world has to offer through the eyes of another person? What if that person possessed the wealth, recognition and connections that are beyond your wildest dreams? This movie explores the infinite possibilities and the ethical ramifications of these questions. Craig Schwartz (John Cusack) is a struggling puppeteer who is not content with his dull existence. His wife Lotte (Cameron Diaz) is more concerned about the well-being of her chimpanzee than anything else. Craig starts a real job at a peculiar company, and makes an incredibly feeble attempt to have an affair with the woman of his dreams (Catherine Keener). While filing documents, he accidentally stumbles upon some kind of portal into the mind of the actor John Malkovich. After a few minutes of transferred consciousness, the body is dropped from the sky next to the New Jersey Turnpike. He and his wife have life changing experiences, and their marriage crumbles because of it. Craig's puppeteering skills eventually allow him to take full control of Malkovich. He uses the name recognition of an established actor to launch his career as a legitimate puppeteer and lives the life he has always wanted. Years go by before he is forced out, only to be replaced by several elderly immortals. I won't get into this mythology because it's difficult to explain. This movie is bizarre and awkward at times, but the characters are still relatable on some level. It won Oscars for Best Screenplay and Best Director (Spike Jonze).
Human Nature (2001)- Trailer
This movie is essentially an examination of instinct and repressed desire. It shows how self awareness is primarily what separates animals from human beings, but is that learned or instinctive? The main characters represent the extremes of civilized and barbaric behavior. Dr. Nathan Bronfman (Tim Robbins) has dedicated his life to teaching mice table manners until he comes across an ape man named Puff (Rhys Ifans). Bronfman grew up in an extremely civilized environment. His parents would send him to bed without dinner if he used the wrong fork. Lila Jute (Patricia Arquette) is a circus attraction/nature writer with an abnormal body hair condition. While this would seem humiliating to anyone, Lila is content with her life...for the most part. She prefers to live an isolated life in the forest, and has an intense love for mother nature. It doesn't really love her back, but it doesn't judge her either. Mutual love and sex are the only missing components of a "perfect" life. Bronfman and Lila settle for each other, despite how dramatically different they are. Lila has to compromise her morals and values to make the relationship last. Civilizing Puff becomes an issue of contention between the two, and Bronfman ends up dead because of it. He shares his side of the story from beyond the grave. This is one of Kaufman's most humorous screenplays, and one of the first movies Michel Gondry directed.
Adaptation (2002)- Trailer
An in-depth look into the agonizing process of writing something unique and inspiring. The temptation to plagiarize or follow some kind of formulaic sequence of events is almost impossible to ignore. What exactly does one write about when you're trying to avoid hackneyed storytelling techniques? Is it possible to make something about nothing interesting? Life is better represented this way, but what is the point of watching something with no discernible plot or conflict? Is it even possible to write something like that. Kaufman would like to think so. Nicolas Cage does an exceptional job playing a neurotic Charlie Kaufman and his fictional twin brother Donald. Charlie is struggling to write a screenplay based on a moving book about rare flowers, while Donald is attending seminars for instruction on screenwriting that has proven to be successful in the industry. Charlie is ashamed of his brother for doing this, but he admires Donald's ability to finish what he starts without over thinking. Two stories are interwoven throughout the movie. The other one involves Susan Orlean's (Meryl Streep) inspiration for her novel the The Orchid Thief. A real non-fiction book that was published in 1994. John Laroche (Chris Cooper) may not be much to look at, but he is a fascinating character to say the least. He is so full of life, and Susan wishes she could be as passionate about anything like he is about flowers. The two stories converge when Charlie accidentally writes himself into the screenplay. Stress and desperation push him to the edge of insanity as he tries to find the perfect ending. The movie ends as Charlie subconsciously narrates his life after a violent encounter with Susan and John. Donald dies while trying to help, that's why he gets a writing credit. Adaptation won deserved Oscars for it's originality and creativity. Spike Jonze was not rewarded for directing it, but he should've been.
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (2002)- Trailer
Based on the autobiography by the famous television producer Chuck Barris, Sam Rockwell gives one of the best performances of his career. According to the memoir, Barris claims to have led a double-life as a CIA operative. He was paid to travel around the world and kill for the U.S. government, thirty-three people by his count. This is highly improbable for a number of reasons, one of which being the shows he was responsible for. He created, produced and even hosted game shows like The Dating Game, The Newlywed Game and The Gong Show. The movie does show how doing both took its toll and affected his sanity. He starts losing the ability to differentiate between dream and reality, and he takes contestants on trips to "exotic" locations like Finland and East Germany. This was his way of killing two birds with one stone, no pun intended. His lack of military experience is suspicious, but he was adamant that a game show host is the perfect cover. This obviously represents how fictionalized an autobiography can be. We all have a tendency to exaggerate our stories in order to make ourselves look better. Barris just wanted his life to appear more interesting. His game shows may be in syndication now, but they were not well-received at first. They were the predecessors of "reality-based" programming that is so popular nowadays. His critics were relentless and ratings were unpredictable. He must've dreamed of another occupation, and espionage was a fascinating topic of conversation during the Cold War. In other words, if want to sell books, make your story as attention grabbing and holding as you possibly can. Apparently, George Clooney did more than direct and act in this movie. He made several major changes to the screenplay without consulting the screenwriter, infuriating Kaufman in the process. Clooney's directorial debut was quite impressive, but the creativity of the storyline was all Kaufman.
Joel Barish (Jim Carrey) and Clementine Kruczynski (Kate Winslet) have a history, but they have no recollection of this when they believe that they are meeting each other for the first time. Set in the near future, a procedure for targeted memory deletion exists for people who just want to forget and start over. There is no linear storyline here, representing how unpredictable and erratic the subconscious can be. Joel's lucidity during the procedure makes him realize the huge mistake he's made. He and his projection of Clementine try to fight back by summoning other memories that weren't supposed to be targeted, but resistance is futile in the end. He wakes up the next morning with no memory of the last few years of his life, but Clementine still exists in his subconscious. She is the impulsive girl of his dreams who makes life worth living, but she has become bipolar and borderline insane. Her new boyfriend Patrick (Elijah Wood) is incapable of using his own words or buying his own gifts for Clementine. When Joel and Clementine meet again, they immediately realize how perfect they are for one another. Director Michel Gondry and Kaufman have created the most intelligent and meaningful romantic comedy of all time. This is a masterpiece of a movie that can be enjoyed over and over.
Charlie Kaufman's directorial debut is one of the most complex and multi-layered movies I have ever seen. Fresh off a successful production of Death of a Salesman, director Caden Cotard (Phillip Seymour Hoffman) is determined to create his own play. One of brutal realism and honesty that mirrors his own existence. It's a celebration of the mundane inside a cavernous warehouse that contains a life-sized replica of Manhattan. Caden puts his whole self into it and alienates everyone he cares about in the process. His own life veers wildly off-course as he develops a debilitating illness and isolates himself from the world. The shadow of his ex-wife Adele (Catherine Keener), a celebrated painter who moved to Germany, haunts him every day. His daughter Olive grows up without any moral guidance or supervision from her mother, and she blames her father for abandoning her. It gradually becomes too difficult for Caden to mentally and physically function in his own world, but he lives on in his play. As the years rapidly pass, he buries himself deeper into his masterpiece. Populating the cast and crew with doppelgangers, he blurs the line between the play and that of his own deteriorating reality. A change in creative direction arrives in Millicent Weems (Dianne Wiest), who gives Caden the permanent break he needs. Although I have seen this movie a few times, I am still pretty confused by it. I enjoyed it though, because it challenges the viewer to keep up with intellectual themes of existentialism and philosophy.
