Being John Malkovich [DVD]

Being John Malkovich is without a doubt one of the more surreal and original films to come out of America for some time. The inspired plot goes something like this, Craig Schwartz, a down on his luck puppeteer (John Cusack) takes on a filing job in a building on the 7 1/2 (the explanation why it’s 7 1/2 is hilarious). There, he encounters the sexy and cruel Maxine (Catherine Keener), whom he immediately forms an unhealthy attraction for, unbeknown to his timid and devoted wife, Lotte (an unrecognizable Cameron Diaz). Things get strange however when Craig discovers a small doorway at the back of a filing cabinet which ends up being a portal into John Malkovich’s mind. This of course is only the beginning. Director Spike Jonze, whose background is in music video’s (Beastie Boy’s “Sabotage” and Fat Boy Slim’s “Praise You” just to name a few) has opted to treat the film’s insane subject matter in the most matter of fact way. The screenplay by Charlie Kaufman explores every possibility that this existential conundrum evokes, at turns managing to be hilarious, weird and melancholy. Cast also includes Mary Kay Place, Charlie Sheen and Orson Bean.