Not Quite as Original As You May Think...

Rating: 1/10 (2 November 2000)

Well, first of I want to make clear that I am a person who is not put off by out there concepts nor am I intellectually devoid. I only point this out as many people seem to think they could be the only reasons why a person could not enjoy this 'masterpiece'. I'm not going to say this film's awful, but I will say it's over rated. All the cast put in a good performance and I particularly enjoyed John Cusack as I usually do yet I felt cheated by this film. Firstly, the concept of delving into someone elses mind in some kind of voyeuristic power trip is nothing new, it has been explored in novels before today, and even video games i.e. Body Rides by Richard Laymon and the game Psychic Detective. I state this to show that the idea behind this film isn't so revolutionary as some may think. In Laymon's Body Rides a bracelet is used to go in the mind of others and, coincidentally, the main character in the story ultimately uses the bracelet to jump into somebody elses mind to escape death. And in Psychic Detective the main character can do the same merely by though. I'm not saying the stories are identical but they do share common ideas. Secondly, I just couldn't relate to the characters, I know they were supposed to be obnoxious but I ended up almost not giving a damn about them as a result of this. However, at this point, I must point out something that did touch me in this film, it was Cusack's character (Craig) who's fate was somewhat undeserved and I felt sympathy for him, his act showing that he did indeed love Maxine, and I also found the thought of Malkovich's daughter becoming the next vessel disturbing as, in essence, Lester/Malkovich/etc was stealing somebody's life. To sum up as a whole, the film did have points where I chuckled or felt something but I ultimately felt denied and I think people should allow other people to think that this film isn't as good as it has been made out to be. In my opinion, if a friend has it, borrow it and see for yourself but don't waste your money on a rental or a DVD, it's just not worth it. Even if you enjoy fringe cinema as I do, you will find no substance in this film to satisfy you, only a huge hollow space around which there is a thinly woven plot.