Being John Malkovich: Critic Reviews

Overlong.

It is hard to mix moods -- the film is manic, subtle, comic and vaguely sad -- but [Jonze] does it masterfully.

This outrageous comic fantasy may not sustain its brilliance throughout its 112 minutes, but it keeps cooking for so much of that time that I don't have many complaints.

It's clever, witty, dark and, most importantly, unwaveringly bizarre.

By the time the tunnel worthy of the likes of Gulliver and Alice becomes a freeway clogged with bit players, a big chill has descended on all the characters.

Devilishly inventive and so far out there it's almost off the scale.

Wonderfully inventive, wickedly funny, and thoughtful enough to keep your mind on full alert, it's a square peg in the round world of genre films.

Kids won't get this sex-driven, head-trip comedy.

The movie is so successful at being so far on the fringe, it often isolates.

Will benefit greatly from repeat viewings and fervent post-viewing deconstruction.

A film that seems to make all the right choices.

In just a few years, with a flurry of wildly imaginative films and three Oscar nominations, Kaufman has managed to join the likes of David Mamet, Stephen King, William Shakespeare and Oscar Wilde on the short list of screenwriting superstars.

A triumph. Featuring a bizarrely original storyline, the screenplay by Charlie Kaufman is brought to the screen by Jonze in what may turn out to be one of the funniest films of the year.

A surrealistic ride into a fantasy world that is unique and never before seen.

...dense with ideas and non sequitur surprises, a viewer-friendly fun house of a film that asks only that we enjoy the ride. It is smart without seeming challenging...

Charlie Kaufman must be a monkey's uncle...

This is "Alice in Wonderland" for this decade; its heroes crawl down rabbit holes into a world of gender role and sexual identity conflicts.

No one will accuse music-video director Spike Jonze of making his feature-film debut with a boring, conventional movie.

Premises don't come packaged more cleverly than this one. Stellar cast, eclectic story and a peculiar concept render this an imaginative albeit uneven two hours of unusual movie entertainment.

I highly recommend being John Malkovich. And if you can't do it, at least see the film.

Being John Malkovich is one head-trip of a comedy.

Jonze's style s in his own inventive manner and, whilst the subject matter is certainly off-the-wall, the dialogue is spot on.

What it leaves behind is a dizzying sense of exhilaration, like being bathed in champagne.

Wonderful and inspired weirdness.

Defies all expectations. It touches you in places you didn't think a film could reach. It's everything at once, thoughts, feelings, urges... But it is not total confusion. It does make sense. A lot. And it's hysterically funny, too!