A Real Head Trip (har, har, har)

Rating: Null/10 (5 November 1999)

What a ride! Man, I wish I could have been inside Charlie Kaufman's head when he came up with this premise. "Being John Malkovich" is one of those rare films, like "The Truman Show" and "Groundhog Day", that is able to take a potentially dicey premise and go all the way with it. It's not only amazing that Kaufman was able to conceive something so strange, but it's tantamount to a cinematic miracle that he was able to weave it into a tale that, within itself, unfolds with impeccable consistency and logic. Kudos for that.
The actors also serve the material well. It was particularly nice to see Cameron Diaz doing such passionate, committed work after "There's Something About Mary", a lame film with a boring heroine Diaz could have played in her sleep. How strange it must be for John Malkovich to watch this film. It's probably one of the most original texts on acting and its links to identity ever made.
Overall, I was very taken with this film, and am still a little exhilarated from the experience. One bone of contention, however: Spike Jonze needs to buy a tripod. Handheld camera only works in very rare instances, when the material really demands it ("Saving Private Ryan"); otherwise, it's just the camera calling attention to itself ("The Impostors"). Let us linger on what you're showing us. Your film will only be better.