Step inside 'Being John Malkovich' for alternative fun<\/p>\n
By Hartoyo Pratiknyo<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Those who subscribe to the credo that suspension
\nof disbelief is a major element of the filmmaker's art should
\nmake it a point to see Being John Malkovich, which will be shown
\nSunday, Nov. 5, at the Djakarta Theater. One of 117 entries in
\nthe ongoing Jakarta International Film Festival (JiFFest), the
\nfilm is easily one of the weirdest and most impossible movies
\nmade in recent years.<\/p>\n
Graig Schwartz (John Cusack), a down-on-his-luck puppeteer
\nscanning the newspapers for a job, lands himself a position as a
\nfiling clerk in an office located on the 7 1\/2th floor of a
\nCentral New York building. Reporting for work, he steps into the
\nelevator where a kind lady is luckily on hand to help him stop it
\nbetween the 7th and 8th floor and to pry open the door with a
\ncrowbar.<\/p>\n
Craig finds himself in the corridor of an office with ceilings
\nso low that everybody must walk around stooped ("to keep the
\noverhead low").<\/p>\n
Even at this point it should be clear to the viewer that the
\nstory about to unfold will bear as little semblance to reality as
\nAlice in Wonderland.<\/p>\n
But the madness begins in earnest when Craig discovers hidden
\nbehind one of the filing cabinets in his office a little door,
\nwhich opens onto a sort of portal that leads directly into the
\nbrain of John Malkovich, one of America's most popular actors,
\nallowing one to see the world through his eyes. After about 15
\nminutes, the ride ends and the visitor -- or traveler -- is
\ndumped at the side of a New Jersey turnpike.<\/p>\n
Craig initially keeps the discovery to himself, but he becomes
\nattracted to Maxine, a sexy fellow office worker played superbly
\nby Catherine Keener, and to get closer to her he lets her in on
\nthe secret. Together they set up a company -- appropriately
\ncalled J.M. Inc. -- to allow ordinary people to experience what
\nit is like to be John Malkovich, even if just for 15 minutes, for
\nUS$200 a trip.<\/p>\n
One can imagine the many consequences involved if all this
\nwere possible. What if someone could actually enter someone's
\nbody and see and experience all the things the "host" is
\nexperiencing? How would it affect his or her life? What if
\nsomeone else could control our mind and body the way a puppeteer
\ncontrols his puppets? What if a man enters a women's brain or
\nvice versa?<\/p>\n
Absurd complications abound. Things start getting rather
\ncomplex when Craig's wife Lotte becomes addicted to being John
\nMalkovich and lets herself, as Malkovich, be seduced by Maxine.
\nIn another hilarious moment in the film, lunatics dwell in
\nMalkovich's head as he is busy studying Shakespeare and starts
\nacting crazily.<\/p>\n
However, all that's good must come to an end. Malkovich
\ndiscovers that something funny is going on in his head and begins
\ninvestigating. He discovers the secret of the portal, and to see
\nwhat everyone is seeing and experiencing while they are being
\nhim, he forces his way into the portal and takes the trip
\nhimself. He enters his brain and gets into one of the most absurd
\nsituations someone can encounter. He lands in a room filled with
\nMalkoviches in which the only dialog consists of the words
\n"Malkovich, Malkovich ... Malkovich".<\/p>\n
The craziest thing about the whole absurd plot is that it
\nworks. One may not exactly be led to suspend one's disbelief, yet
\none can easily accept the possibility that such a change of
\npersona -- and not necessarily by the means such as the film
\nsuggests -- might just be possible, and to ponder the
\nconsequences. On the one hand this is due to the splendid acting
\nby everyone involved, and on the other to Jonze's witty
\ndirection.<\/p>\n
The film's ending feels a little bit artificial, but the
\ncomedy is never crude or slapstick. Not bad for the first feature
\nfilm by a man known mostly for his prize-winning commercials and
\nclever MTV music videos.<\/p>\n
Saturday's film list:<\/p>\n
Surat untuk Bidadari, 4:55 p.m., The Thin Blue Line, 7:05
\np.m., Aguire or The Wrath of God, 9:15 p.m., at TIM 1.<\/p>\n
Petualangan Sherina, 5:35 p.m., Nang Nak, 7:45 p.m., Long
\nNight Journey into the Day, 9:45 p.m., TIM 2. Cyclo, 1 p.m.,
\nTaxandria, 3:15 p.m., Hana Bi, 5:30 p.m., Eating Air, 7:45 p.m.,
\nPlaza Senayan theater.<\/p>\n
Ratcatcher, 5:30 p.m., Not One Less, 7:45 p.m., High Fidelity,
\n10 p.m., Jakarta theater.<\/p>\n
Invitation to a Wedding, 5 p.m., Punitive Damage, 7:15 p.m.,
\nUnder Suspicion, 9:30 p.m., PPHUI, Pusat Perfilman Usmar Ismail,
\nJl. H.R. Rasuna Said, Kav. 22, South Jakarta, phone 5268458).<\/p>\n
For more information, call JiFFest office at 9238364.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/step-inside-being-john-malkovich-for-alternative-fun-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }