Being John Malkovich
Being John Malkovich ??? 1999 (R)
Very weird comedy is the debut feature for Jonze. Highstrung street puppeteer Craig Schwartz (Cusack) is married to frumpy petstore worker Lotte (an unrecognizable Diaz). Forced to take a job as an office clerk in a building on floor sevenandahalf, Craig falls for office vixen, Maxine (Keener), but his big discovery is a sealed door that reveals a tunnel leading directly into actor John Malkovich's mind. Craig views the world through the actor's eyes for 15 minutes at a time and decides to profit on his findings. Things just get more surreal when both Lotte and Maxine get involved. 112m/C VHS, DVD, HD DVD . John Cusack, Cameron Diaz, Catherine Keener, John Malkovich, Orson Bean, Mary Kay Place, Charlie Sheen; D: Spike Jonze; W: Charlie Kaufman; C: Lance Acord; M: Carter Burwell. British Acad. '99: Orig. Screenplay; Ind. Spirit '00: First Feature, First Screenplay; L.A. Film Critics '99: Screenplay; MTV Movie Awards '00: New Filmmaker (Jonze); N.Y. Film Critics '99: Support. Actor (Malkovich), Support. Actress (Keener); Natl. Soc. Film Critics '99: Film, Screenplay.
