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Being John Malkovich

  • 1999
  • R
  • 1h 53m
IMDb RATING
7.7/10
362K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
2,495
298
John Cusack, Cameron Diaz, and Catherine Keener in Being John Malkovich (1999)
A puppeteer discovers a portal that leads literally into the head of movie star John Malkovich.
Play trailer1:47
3 Videos
99+ Photos
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A puppeteer discovers a portal that leads literally into the head of movie star John Malkovich.A puppeteer discovers a portal that leads literally into the head of movie star John Malkovich.A puppeteer discovers a portal that leads literally into the head of movie star John Malkovich.

  • Director
    • Spike Jonze
  • Writer
    • Charlie Kaufman
  • Stars
    • John Cusack
    • Cameron Diaz
    • Catherine Keener
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    7.7/10
    362K
    YOUR RATING
    POPULARITY
    2,495
    298
    • Director
      • Spike Jonze
    • Writer
      • Charlie Kaufman
    • Stars
      • John Cusack
      • Cameron Diaz
      • Catherine Keener
    • 948User reviews
    • 217Critic reviews
    • 90Metascore
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Nominated for 3 Oscars
      • 49 wins & 79 nominations total

    Videos3

    Official Trailer
    Trailer 1:47
    Official Trailer
    Being John Malkovich
    Trailer 0:32
    Being John Malkovich
    Being John Malkovich
    Trailer 0:32
    Being John Malkovich
    'Being John Malkovich' | Anniversary Mashup
    Clip 1:35
    'Being John Malkovich' | Anniversary Mashup

    Photos164

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    + 158
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    Top cast79

    Edit
    John Cusack
    John Cusack
    • Craig Schwartz
    Cameron Diaz
    Cameron Diaz
    • Lotte Schwartz
    Catherine Keener
    Catherine Keener
    • Maxine Lund
    John Malkovich
    John Malkovich
    • John Horatio Malkovich
    Ned Bellamy
    Ned Bellamy
    • Derek Mantini
    Eric Weinstein
    • Father at Puppet Show
    Madison Lanc
    • Daughter at Puppet Show
    Octavia Spencer
    Octavia Spencer
    • Woman in Elevator
    • (as Octavia L. Spencer)
    Mary Kay Place
    Mary Kay Place
    • Floris
    Orson Bean
    Orson Bean
    • Dr. Lester
    K.K. Dodds
    K.K. Dodds
    • Wendy
    Reginald C. Hayes
    Reginald C. Hayes
    • Don
    • (as Reggie Hayes)
    Byrne Piven
    Byrne Piven
    • Captain Mertin
    Judith Wetzell
    • Tiny Woman
    Kevin Carroll
    Kevin Carroll
    • Cab Driver
    Willie Garson
    Willie Garson
    • Guy in Restaurant
    W. Earl Brown
    W. Earl Brown
    • First J.M. Inc. Customer
    Charlie Sheen
    Charlie Sheen
    • Charlie
    • Director
      • Spike Jonze
    • Writer
      • Charlie Kaufman
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews948

    7.7362.2K
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    Featured reviews

    9gogoschka-1

    Wildly Imaginative Surreal Masterwork That Pushes The Limits Of Storytelling

    Charlie Kaufman (script) and Spike Jonze (director) burst on the scene together with their collaboration on this crazy masterpiece. 'Being John Malkovich' pushes the limits of storytelling; this wildly imaginative film shows that even the most surreal storyline can still be made entertaining if a filmmaker doesn't care about conventions and knows just what the medium is capable of. Perhaps the most original release in a year that had several very original releases ('Fight Club' and 'The Matrix' were both also released in '99), the film's playful creative energy had an effect on screenwriters, directors, actors and producers that can hardly be overstated. There had simply never been anything like it - and one only has to look at a contemporary TV show like 'Legion' to see what a mark this film left. Groundbreaking and simply inspired. 9 stars out of 10.

    Favorite films: IMDb.com/list/mkjOKvqlSBs/

    Lesser-Known Masterpieces: imdb.com/list/ls070242495/
    9paul-nemecek

    Being John Malkovich is a Wild Ride

    This has been a great year for alternate realities at the movies. Films like The Matrix, Sixth Sense, Blair Witch Project, Thirteenth Floor, and Run, Lola, Run have all, in different ways, played with the line that separates past from present, reality from simulation, and truth from fiction. Being John Malkovich can be added to this list of innovative films that a recent issue of Entertainment Weekly described as the first films of the 21st century.

    There is little in this film that is formula. John Cusack plays a gifted puppeteer who aspires to be one of the world's great puppeteers. Unfortunately, there are not a lot of job openings for puppeteers so he is reduced to street theater where he is clearly underappreciated. An almost unrecognizable Cameron Diaz plays Cusack's wife, a pet lover who is just a little quirky. When Cusack decides to take a job as a file clerk on floor 7.5 of an office building, life becomes even weirder. Cusack discovers an opening behind a file cabinet, a little door that leads into a tunnel. Like the characters in C.S. Lewis's The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, (or Alice Through the Looking Glass), Cusack jumps in and finds himself in an alternative universe. Instead of Narnia or Wonderland, Cusack finds himself on a 15-minute ride inside actor John Malkovich (played quite capably by . . . John Malkovich).

    Cusack joins forces with a co-worker to create a business. For $200 people can spend 15 minutes inside of John Malkovich's head, seeing the world through his eyes. Since this is even better than Real World or a WebCam show, people come in droves. Eventually, Malkovich himself discovers what's going on and jumps the line to go inside of his own mind. This leads to what has to be one of the more unique scenes in the history of film. The story takes on an even more interesting twist when Cusack finds a unique way to fulfill his lifelong dream of being the world's greatest puppeteer.

    This is one weird film--and I've left out some of the weird. This is also one of the most creative films I have seen, and the film raises interesting questions about consciousness, identity, love and meaning. There are great performances here by Cusack, Diaz, Malkovich, and Catherine Keener (Cusack's co-worker and eventual love interest). The real star of the show, however, is the story itself. First-time screenwriter Charlie Kaufman has crafted an interesting and innovative story. First-time director Spike Jonze handles the material extremely well. This is clearly not a film for all tastes, and the language and sexual scenes may well offend. This is, however, something that is very rare, in Hollywood--innovative, creative, and thought provoking. Watch for this film during the Oscar nominations. If this doesn't get nominated for screenplay--at least--I will hang up my trophy.
    9SnoopyStyle

    strange and compelling

    Unemployed puppeteer Craig Schwartz (John Cusack) and animal lover Lotte Schwartz (Cameron Diaz) are in a loveless marriage. Craig gets a job on the low ceiling 7½ floor of a Manhattan office building. He falls for alluring fellow worker Maxine Lund (Catherine Keener) who doesn't return the feelings. He finds a doorway in his office that leads into the mind of John Malkovich. After 15 minutes, the person is ejected into a ditch on the New Jersey Turnpike. Maxine decides to sell tickets at $200 a pop. Lotte is completely changed by the experience and thinks she's a transsexual. Craig's boss Dr. Lester is obsessed with Malkovich.

    This is one of the strangest and most compelling ideas ever put on the screen written by Charlie Kaufman and directed by Spike Jonze. It is exciting that everything and everyone is a little off in this movie. Cameron Diaz is ugly. John Cusack is disheveled. Catherine Keener is a sex goddess. The whole movie is off its axis and so much the better for it. It's so weird that it's a lot of fun.
    8Xstal

    'Consciousness is a terrible curse'...

    ... but without it you'd be unconscious or you wouldn't be you, or are you, you? Exploring identity, appearance, choice and fame in the most original and entertaining of ways, this esoterically amusing vision of what makes us who we are manages to keep you engaged and amused while encouraging a little self reflection upon completion - that is if it is you doing the reflecting, pulling your own strings, grinding your own organ, dancing to your own tune.
    FrenchEddieFelson

    A gem resulting of an unexpected mix of Twilight zone and The Monty Python

    This film is excellently made and based on an imaginative, intelligent and wacky script: a depressive puppeteer discovers by chance a mysterious portal in his five-foot tall office located on the 7,5th floor of a Manhattan office building, leading within the head of the movie star John Malkovich. The cast is excellent and the actors co-exist in perfect symbiosis, literally as well as figuratively. The quintet John Cusack + Cameron Diaz + Orson Bean + Catherine Keener + John Malkovich is awesome.

    A not exhaustive list of my favorite quotes: Meet you in Malkovich in one hour. The truth is for suckers, Johnny boy. Let's have sex on his table and then make him eat an omelette off of it. I comes before U. You don't know how lucky you are being a monkey, because consciousness is a terrible curse. There is truth, and there are lies, and art always tells the truth, even when it's lying. She's got her doctorate in speech impedimentology from Case Western. It's the idea of being inside someone else's skin and seeing what they see and feeling what they feel.

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      John Malkovich was approached about this film several times and loved the script, but he and his production crew felt that another actor would fit the role better. Malkovich offered to help produce the film, and aid Spike Jonze in any way, but refused to star in it. Eventually after a couple of years Malkovich's will was worn down and he agreed to star in the film.
    • Goofs
      Just after the first time Lotte falls out of the portal onto the side of the New Jersey Turnpike, a palm tree is visible in the distance over Craig's shoulder.
    • Quotes

      Craig Schwartz: You don't know how lucky you are being a monkey. Because consciousness is a terrible curse. I think. I feel. I suffer. And all I ask in return is the opportunity to do my work. And they won't allow it... because I raise issues.

    • Crazy credits
      at the end of the cast listing is noted ...and John Malkovich
    • Connections
      Edited from 1998 MTV Video Music Awards (1998)
    • Soundtracks
      Allegro, from Music for Strings
      Written by Béla Bartók

      Performed by The Cleveland Orchestra

      Conducted by Christoph von Dohnányi

      Courtesy of The Decca Record Company Ltd.

      Under license from Universal Music Special Markets

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    FAQ21

    • How long is Being John Malkovich?Powered by Alexa
    • Why John Malkovich?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • December 3, 1999 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • ¿Quieres ser John Malkovich?
    • Filming locations
      • RMS Queen Mary - 1126 Queens Highway, Long Beach, California, USA
    • Production companies
      • Astralwerks
      • Gramercy Pictures (I)
      • Propaganda Films
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $13,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $22,863,596
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $637,721
      • Oct 31, 1999
    • Gross worldwide
      • $23,106,795
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 53 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Digital
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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