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Being John Malkovich (1999)
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showtimesofficial sitesmiscellaneousphotographssound clipsvideo clipsBeing John Malkovich (1999)
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Overview
Tagline:
Ever wanted to be someone else? Now you can. morePlot:
A puppeteer discovers a portal that leads literally into the head of the movie star, John Malkovich. full summary | add synopsisPlot Keywords:
Underwater Scene
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Actor Playing Himself
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No Opening Credits
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Soul Transference
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Chrysler Building New York
more
Awards:
Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 45 wins & 48 nominations moreNewsDesk:
(35 articles)
Cannes Competitors Announced (From Studio Briefing. 23 April 2008, 10:20 AM, PDT)
Cusack "Only Made 10 Good Films" (From WENN. 6 September 2007)
User Comments:
Insanely brilliant and brilliantly insane. moreUS TV Schedule:
| Wed. July 9 | 2:35 PM | SHOW | |||
| Sat. July 12 | 4:30 PM | SHOW |
Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only)| John Cusack | ... | Craig Schwartz | |
| Cameron Diaz | ... | Lotte Schwartz | |
| Ned Bellamy | ... | Derek Mantini | |
| Eric Weinstein | ... | Father at Puppet Show | |
| Madison Lanc | ... | Daughter at Puppet Show | |
| Octavia Spencer | ... | Woman in Elevator (as Octavia L. Spencer) | |
| Mary Kay Place | ... | Floris | |
| Orson Bean | ... | Dr. Lester | |
| Catherine Keener | ... | Maxine Lund | |
| K.K. Dodds | ... | Wendy | |
| Reginald C. Hayes | ... | Don (as Reggie Hayes) | |
| Byrne Piven | ... | Captain Mertin | |
| Judith Wetzell | ... | Tiny Woman | |
| John Malkovich | ... | John Horatio Malkovich | |
| Kevin Carroll | ... | Cab Driver |
Additional Details
Also Known As:
Dans la peau de John Malkovich (Belgium: French title) (Canada: French title) (France) [fr]¿Quieres ser John Malkovich? (Argentina) (Mexico) [es]
În mintea lui John Malkovich (Romania) [ro]
A John Malkovich menet (Hungary) [hu]
Being John Malkovich (Denmark) [da]
Being John Malkovich (Germany) [de]
Cómo ser John Malkovich (Spain) [es]
Elämäni John Malkovichina (Finland) [fi]
Essere John Malkovich (Italy) [it]
I huvudet på John Malkovich (Sweden) [sv]
Malkovich no ana (Japan) [ja]
Queres Ser John Malkovich? (Portugal) [pt]
Quero Ser John Malkovich (Brazil) [pt]
Sto myalo tou John Malkovich (Greece) [el]
more
Parents Guide:
View content advisory for parentsRuntime:
112 min | Canada:113 minCountry:
USALanguage:
EnglishColor:
Color (Technicolor)Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 moreSound Mix:
Dolby DigitalCertification:
Philippines:R-18 | Brazil:18 | Singapore:R(A) | Portugal:M/16 | Argentina:13 | Australia:MA | Belgium:KT | Canada:14A | Canada:G (Québec) | Chile:14 | Finland:K-12 | France:U | Germany:12 (w) | Hong Kong:IIB | Ireland:15 | Italy:T | Netherlands:AL | New Zealand:M | South Korea:18 | Spain:13 | Sweden:11 | Switzerland:16 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:16 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15 | USA:R (certificate #36965) | Norway:11 | Iceland:L (original rating) | Iceland:LH (video rating) | Singapore:M18 (DVD rating)MOVIEmeter: 
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
Orson Bean had a role in the film Innerspace (1987); also about a man taking control of another man's body. moreGoofs:
Continuity: When Craig is about to discover the portal, he picks up the dropped file and puts it on the bureau next to him. But in the next shot that file is not there, only those that were there before. moreQuotes:
[first lines]Lotte Schwartz: Craig, honey, it's time for bed.
[fade out and in]
Orrin Hatch the bird: Craig, honey, time to get up, Craig, honey, time to get up, Craig, honey, time to get up, Craig, honey, time to get up,
Craig Schwartz: Lotte...
Lotte Schwartz: I'm sorry. I didn't know Orrin Hatch was out of his cage.
more
Soundtrack:
Tchaikovsky: Swan Lake moreFAQ
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All hail Spike Jonze for he is a genius. Not content with being the undisputed king of music videos, he's set his sights on full-length-feature-films. One might imagine that the often surreal, always innovative humour of his short music promos might not transfer across to a much longer production like hell. Being John Malkovich' is a fresh exciting stroke of genius.
John Cusack is Craig Schwartz, an unemployed puppeteer looser guy. In order to earn a living he is forced to find himself a regular job, only it soon becomes apparent that regular it is not. Working as a filing clerk on floor seven and a half, Craig stumbles across a portal into John Malkovich's head. No, really, that's what happens. Anyway, he turns this into a business venture with help from the beautiful Maxine (Catherine Keener), whom he lusts after. Maxine is more interested, however, in his wife, Lotte (Diaz, like you've never seen her before) but only when she's being John Malkovich.
Don't worry if this all sounds a little strange to you, it should do, it's probably the most surreal film ever made. I obviously can't give all the credit for this to director Spike Jonze; Charlie Kaufman is the genius that wrote this insanity. He's the most acutely imaginative and ingenious man of our time.
With such a fantastic cast the acting is of course superb; everyone's brilliant, especially Malkovich himself. Well obviously, you say, he's playing himself yes, but he's also playing himself being played by an increasingly psychotic puppeteer.
Monkey flash backs and a restaurant full of Malkoviches are highlights of the insanely brilliant and brilliantly insane movie. If you thought that Spike Jonez could never top the Daft Punk talking dog video, you have never been so wrong in your life.
10/10