"I have seen a world that NO man should see!"

Rating: 8/10 (28 June 2014)

My second viewing of this film revealed a depth I had not noticed in the first time around. The movie officially is filed under the comedy label, and it certainly does seem so, if we remember the scene where Malkovich enters his own portal or the dark bits of humor regarding Schwartz unfortunate life, but it actually goes a long way over to explore the obscurities of one's subconscious mind. I've been a long time fan of Charlie Kaufman's fantastic creativity and talent to put together the most fantastic and strange stories. He had me at Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and it's hard not to remember Joel & Clementine looking for a safe place to hide from the "eraser guys", as we watch people come and go in and out of John Malkovich's mind and its layers. That Kaufman picked him to be the protagonist is curious, as he's not a particular Hollywood A-List and one could even say, very random...but I guess that is part of the bittersweet humor of the story, too.
Cameron Diaz was barely recognizable, and I think it's great that so many good actors are a part of this, I guess it's a script - and an opportunity to do something different, that only comes along every now and then. At times, the humor exceeds the "tragic but funny" line and becomes just tragic, like the memories we find visiting Malkovich's mind or the scene where Schwartz ties up Lotte and keeps her in the cage in order to be with Maxine. Everyone seems to be unhappy with their place in life and trying desperately to move on, but in the move they end up being hurt and mislead by each other...funny thing is that John Malkovich's head should be the catalyst for them to do so.
I confess I'm not very fond of the "alien" masterminding subplot behind the portal's origin, because it's just too weird! But what in this movie isn't? I guess that was better than the portal remaining unexplained, so I try to pass it over and look at the innovative project it is.