Bizarre story becomes too strange at the end

Rating: 9/10 (30 June 2007)

A rather ingenious concept that unfortunately goes a bit off the rails at the end and turns a masterpiece into a near-miss. Everything up to the "eight months later" message is fantastic: it's funny, it's smart, it's dark, it's quirky. John Malkovich's performance as himself is inspired. Cusack is a bit stale, but the two women more than make up for it with a pair of terrific performances. The story is bizarre without being over-the-top or silly. The scene where Malkovich goes into his own head is comic brilliance (even moreso when he gets beaned by a beer can as soon as he comes out). But, once Malkovich is taken over and becomes the puppeteer, it just becomes far too strange even for me and the film suffers as a result. Still, it's one of the most unique films ever made and definitely worth a look, at least.