Overview
A surreal journey into the mind of a celebrity reveals the complexities of identity and desire.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- witty
- absurdist
- surreal
- curious movie night
- late night cinephile viewing
What critics said
Critics broadly praised the film as exceptionally original, smart, funny, and skillfully directed, with a stellar ensemble supporting Charlie Kaufman's inventive screenplay.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Craig discovers a hidden door that lets people enter John Malkovich's mind for fifteen minutes.
Craig, Lotte, and Maxine each experience or exploit Malkovich's body and consciousness in different ways.
LesterCorp occupies a bizarre five-foot-tall seven-and-a-half floor in a Manhattan office building.
Maxine proposes selling fifteen-minute visits into Malkovich's mind for two hundred dollars.
Films like Being John Malkovich, and why
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
shares surrealist world-building, identity themes, darkly playful comedy, and an inventive high-concept premise
The Truman Show
shares offbeat fantasy, existential comedy, eccentric characters, and a reality-bending view of ordinary life
After Hours
shares absurdist workplace settings, psychological displacement, and a bizarre comic exploration of identity
Adaptation.
shares surrealist comedy, metamorphic identity, and a strange emotional triangle driven by unconventional fantasy
Movie Details
- Director
- Spike Jonze
- Release Date
- 1999-10-29
- Runtime
- 113 min
- Rating
- 7.4 / 10 (4976)
Cast
- John Cusack
- Cameron Diaz
- John Malkovich
- Catherine Keener
- Orson Bean
- Mary Kay Place
- W. Earl Brown
- Carlos Jacott
- Willie Garson
- Byrne Piven
Where to watch in United States
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Being John Malkovich about?
- A frustrated puppeteer finds a portal into an actor’s mind and turns a metaphysical identity crisis into a wickedly funny battle over love, embodiment, and control.
- What is Being John Malkovich like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Being John Malkovich as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Being John Malkovich violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Being John Malkovich as mild.
- What did critics think of Being John Malkovich?
- Critics broadly praised the film as exceptionally original, smart, funny, and skillfully directed, with a stellar ensemble supporting Charlie Kaufman's inventive screenplay.
- Which films are like Being John Malkovich?
- Films with a similar feel include Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, The Truman Show, After Hours, and Adaptation..
- How long is Being John Malkovich?
- Being John Malkovich runs 113 minutes.
- Where can I watch Being John Malkovich?
- In United States, Being John Malkovich is available to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home.
