A bit of a disappointment

Rating: Null/10 (26 May 2000)

Good first attempt Spike Jonze at doing a sanitized Terry Gilliam movie that suffers from a bad Hollywood ending.
This film had so much potential in starting with a bizarre premise. Through the film it later studies the nature of artistic medium, the actor / director relationship, the depth of the human psyche and personal observation in relationships. However, by the end we are treated to a lame love story, a stupid Sci-Fi premise, and a Hollywood inside joke.
Great performances by John Cusak, Cameron Diaz, Orson Bean, John Malkovich, and Mary Kay Place, Why Diaz was overlooked for the average Catherine Keener is beyond me because Diaz really goes all out in this roll.

It is too bad that there is 10 minutes of ending that could have been left on the cutting room floor. Otherwise, this could have been a real classic if it had the courage to follow its story rather than pander to Hollywood.