Being John Malkovich ('00) 1999, Rated R USA Home Entertainment

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Written by Charlie Kaufman; directed by Spike Jonze; starring John Cusack, Catherine Keener, Cameron Diaz and John Malkovich. Released to DVD on May 2, 2000.

While making up a very small percentage of the persons working in Hollywood and earning an absolute pittance when compared to actors, directors and even mediocre screenwriters, script readers have one of the most important jobs in the industry. They read and evaluate the screenplays of prospective writers for studios.

Initially, screenplays are submitted to studio executives who are in charge of development. Receiving the scripts, the execs lie and say that they will, in turn, read the scripts and evaluate them. This is as bald-faced a lie as any in the industry. The execs have no motivation or time to read the volume of scripts that they are sent, so the execs send the manuscripts over to professional script readers who will evaluate the screenplays for them. Based on the comments of said readers, the studios then decide to pass on all the works not written by Sumner Redstoneís daughter or William Goldman.

In Los Angeles recently, I had the opportunity to speak with a veteran script reader. While discussing the state of fluxóand by flux I mean incredibly bad filmmakingóin Hollywood today, the reader mentioned something that caught me completely off-guard. He made the statement that studios arenít necessarily looking to buy the best scripts available, but, rather, those screenplays that donít have any gaping holes or flaws in them.

This is quite a telling fact, given Hollywoodís attempts to prove that it will, having the opportunity, choose the better film to make. However, perched precariously atop their positions of power in the studio food chain, the executives donít want to do anything, or green-light anything that might rock their status in the company. Therefore, when it comes time to option scripts and put movies into production, they will, invariably choose the projects that follow formulas used in previously successful films that donít have much of an element of risk.

The best example of this specious reasoning on the part of executives came after writer Kevin Williamsonís out-of-the-blue hit, Scream. After this tongue-in-cheek teen thriller shocked Hollywood with a $100 million box office, there was a proliferation of teen horror flicks starring television teeny-bopper sensations that were made for roughly $10-15 million dollars, films like I Know What You Did Last Summer, Halloween H20, Disturbing Behavior and The Faculty to name but a few.

With this distinct rationale of profit first, quality second, the fact that a movie like Being John Malkovich was actually made is absolutely phenomenal. That the entertainment community noticed the ë90ís most original, creative and off-beat film and felt strongly enough about first time director Spike Jonzeís celluloid effort to honor it with an Academy Award nomination for best director is a turn in the right direction for the film industry.

John Cusack stars in Being John Malkovich as Craig, a talented, out of work, New York City puppeteer. Needing money to pay the bills, Craigís wife, Lottie (Cameron Diaz) encourages him to go out and get a part-time job, until the puppeteering thing pays off. Craig is hired for a paper-filing job located on the 7 1/2 floor of a downtown Manhattan building. The floor, allegedly built in dimensions that would make a small person feel comfortable, is cramped, roughly 5 feet tall, from floor to ceiling, a fact that allows for numerous "low overhead" jokes. While at work, Craig meets and falls instantly in lust with Maxine (Catherine Keener) and stumbles across a hole in the wall, a portal, that, when entered, sends a person into the mind and body of actor John Malkovich for fifteen minutes. After that time is up, the people are spit out, wet and disheveled onto the side of the New Jersey Turnpike. And from here, screenwriter Charlie Kaufmanís wonderfully original script begins to spiral wildly toward an amazing finish.

I truly enjoyed watching Being John Malkovich because it was funny, refreshing and, unlike so many other releases, I never knew what was going to happen at any given moment. Just when Iíd think Iíd have a bead on the action and where it was going, Jonze would invariably throw something completely unexpected into the action.

At one point in time, Craig locks Lottie into a cage with a chimpanzee (this should say something about the material in and of itself) and leaves. Focusing on Lottie and the chimp, the camera zeroes in on Lottie hands that are tied together. As the chimp looks down at her hands, he becomes agitated and quickly we flashback to one of the chimps repressed memories: running away from hunters in his native Africa, he is forced to watch, helplessly as his parents are tied up by the hunters and carted away.

It was the little elements like these that were unnecessary to the final product that were ultimately included in Jonzeís cut of Being John Malkovich that made this movie so radically different.

Being John Malkovich succeeded as an artistic motion picture too, namely because of the all-around solid contributions of the cast and crew. Kaufman's script was strong and easy to follow, if still a little off-the-wall, Jonzeís direction was masterful and the acting performances by Cusack, Diaz, Keener and Malkovich himself were delightful (Keener received a supporting Oscar nomination for her work).

This was one extremely thought provoking and entertaining movie.

chris neumer

yes, it's true: For some reason, John Malkovich never closes the adjustable flaps on the back of his baseball hat.