TRAGIC LOVE MONTH #9: Being John Malkovich, by Spike Jonze (1999)

Type of Media: Film

It is utterly bizarre that a movie like this exists. It is mind-blowing that a script this weird found a director who wanted to helm it, big name actors who wanted to be in it, a studio that wanted to finance it, and above all, nabbed acclaimed actor John Malkovich to star in it, put his name in the title, and let the plot revolve around a fictionalized version of his life. But it definitely exists, and humanity is better off for it. Because this isn't just a film oddity, it's a great dramatic comedy that uses its bizarre premise to deliver a very human story of desire, self-loathing, and wanting to be somebody else.

John Cusack plays struggling puppeteer Craig Schwartz. Unhappy with his marriage to his animal-loving wife Lotte (played by Cameron Diaz) and frustrated that no one appreciates his art, Craig starts pursuing his coworker Maxine (Catherine Keener), who thinks he's pathetic. One day, Craig finds a small door at his job that works as a portal into the mind of actor John Malkovich. Entering the portal lets a person experience what Malkovich sees, hears, and feels for fifteen minutes before dumping them in a ditch along the New Jersey Turnpike. Craig tells Maxine about this and, naturally, they start selling trips into the portal for $200 a pop. But Craig and Lotte can't keep themselves away from the portal, and start using it to escape their own skins. Then Maxine meets Malkovich while Lotte is in his head, falls in love with that particular combination, and Craig is left heartbroken and desperate to win her over.

Early in the film, Craig says he likes puppetry because it lets him be someone else. What soon becomes apparent is that he wants to be someone else because he hates himself. His marriage to Lotte seems to be joyless, and his advances on Maxine are met with insults. He's clearly intelligent, and a very good puppeteer, but he's stuck working as an office filer because no one accepts his art as legitimate. As John Malkovich he has legitimacy as an artist and, more importantly, power.

Craig craves power. Not just material wealth and recognition, he wants power over other people. You can see this when he first asks Maxine out, he turns it into a binding challenge by saying if he guesses her name she has to have a drink with him. Later he makes a puppet with Maxine and roleplays conversations with it. Several times we see a puppet that looks like Lotte as well, suggesting that Craig has gone through this before. As Malkovich Craig finds satisfaction briefly, but ultimately his power wanes and when he's forced to be himself, he's left with nobody.

Everyone in the cast puts in a good performance, playing characters that are very different from what they're usually cast as, but John Malkovich's acting in particular is incredible to watch, as he plays not only a dramatized version of himself but also himself as inhabited by different people. Spike Jonze's background as a music video director is incredibly evident during the scenes that take place in John Malkovich's mind, like the chase sequence through Malkovich's subconscious and the famous "Malkovich Malkovich Malkovich" scene. He doesn't often use frenetic camera work or surreal visuals, but when he does it makes a big impact. And of course, praise be to Charlie Kaufman for writing something this strange and having the tenacity to keep pushing it until it found a team with the will and talent to pull it off.

While a movie like Being John Malkovich should be esoteric, it's actually surprisingly accessible. It piques a gamut of interests, from comedy to philosophy to sorrow, while still managing to be incredibly unique. If you haven't seen this film yet, you should definitely check it out.